The United States called on G7 and EU to impose tariffs on China and India over Russian oil purchases

The US Treasury Department has called on the Group of Seven advanced economies and the European Union to impose substantial tariffs on goods from China and India. The tariffs are intended to pressure the two countries to stop buying Russian oil, Reuters reported today. According to the department, oil sales to China and India provide Russian President Vladimir Putin with the funds to finance the war in Ukraine.

"Chinese and Indian oil purchases are financing Putin’s war machine and prolonging the senseless killing of the Ukrainian people," the US Treasury Department said in a statement sent to Reuters.

"This week, we made clear to our EU allies that if they are serious about ending the war, they must join us in imposing substantial tariffs, which would be lifted on the day the war ends," it also said. It added that G7 partners must also join the effort.

An AFP diplomatic source said this week that Trump had urged the EU to impose tariffs of 50 to 100 percent on goods from India and China. According to the source, Trump also said that the United States would take similar action if Brussels indicated that it would approve the tariffs.

According to AFP, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said this week that an agreement between the US and EU on new tariffs on countries buying Russian oil would cause the Russian economy to collapse. "And that would bring President Putin to the negotiating table," he added.