Trump says he will raise tariffs on India 'very substantially' over next 24 hours

Dubai: U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday (August 5, 2025) criticized India’s trade practices, calling the country "not a good trading partner," and announced plans to impose a "very substantial" increase in tariffs on Indian goods within the next 24 hours.

"With India, what people don't like to say about India, they're the highest tariff nation. They have the highest tariff of anybody. We do very, very little business with India because their tariffs are so high," Trump said during an interview with CNBC’s Squawk Box.

Trump also accused India of buying large quantities of Russian oil and profiting from it, claiming that such trade helps fuel Russia’s war machine. India dismissed the tariff threat as “unjustified and unreasonable.”

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said in a statement Monday that India, like any other major economy, will “take all necessary measures to safeguard its national interests and economic security.”

New Delhi further clarified that it began importing Russian oil only after traditional suppliers redirected shipments to Europe following the start of the Ukraine conflict. The MEA also noted that Washington had initially supported India’s imports from Russia to help stabilize global energy markets.

Russia backed India’s position, condemning U.S. pressure tactics as “illegitimate.” Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said sovereign nations must be free to choose their trading partners based on their own national interests.

“Russia notes U.S. threats against India but does not consider such statements to be legitimate,” Peskov was quoted as saying by Russian state news agency TASS.

- with inputs from Agencies