Trump’s ‘Double Standard’ on Russia Trade

• US President Donald Trump has claimed he was unaware of the United States’ own trade in Russian uranium and fertilizers.
• His comments came after India defended its oil imports from Russia by highlighting what it called Western double standards.
• Former US Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley criticized Trump, saying he was “burning a relationship with a strong ally like India” while giving a “pass” to China.

GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 6th Aug: US President Donald Trump has claimed he was unaware of Washington’s continued trade with Russia, a point that India recently highlighted to defend its own imports of Russian oil. The comments come amid Trump’s ongoing threats to impose high tariffs on nations that continue to do business with Moscow.

“I don’t know anything about it. I have to check it out,” Trump said during a White House press conference when asked about India’s claim that the US was unfairly singling it out. India had pointed out that despite sanctions, the US has imported billions of dollars worth of Russian goods since January 2022, including enriched uranium and fertilizers. In 2024 alone, Washington imported fertilizers worth $1.27 billion and uranium and plutonium worth $624 million.

While Trump did not provide specific figures, he indicated that the US would increase duties on countries that continue their trade relationship with Moscow. “I never said a percentage, but we’ll be doing quite a bit of that,” he said, adding that he had a meeting with Russia scheduled for “tomorrow.”

The developments have drawn criticism from former US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley. In a post on X, Haley took a dig at Trump for his threats against India, cautioning him against “burning a relationship with a strong ally like India.” She also pointed out that China, which she called an adversary and the “number one buyer of Russian and Iranian oil,” was given a 90-day tariff pause by the Trump Administration.

This week, Trump had said he would “very substantially” increase the 25 per cent tariff on Indian imports, claiming that New Delhi was “fueling the war machine” with its purchases of Russian oil.