Trump tells EU to slap 100% tariffs on India, China over Russian oil purchases: Report

US President Donald Trump has asked the European Union to impose tariffs of up to 100% on imports from India and China as part of a joint push to pressure Russia to ends its war in Ukraine, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday, citing officials familiar with the matter.

Trump made the request after joining by phone a meeting in Washington between senior US and EU officials on ways to increase the economic costs for Moscow, the FT said.

“We’re ready to go, ready to go right now, but we’re only going to do this if our European partners step up with us,” one US official was quoted as saying.

Another official told the newspaper that Washington was prepared to “mirror” any EU tariffs on China and India.

Trump’s push for the European Union to join Washington in imposing punitive tariffs on India and China over their purchases of Russian oil stands in sharp contrast to his latest public outreach to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

On Tuesday, Trump struck a markedly softer tone in a Truth Social post, describing Modi as a “very good friend” and expressing confidence that bilateral trade talks would reach a “successful conclusion.”

Modi responded in kind on X, calling the United States and India “close friends and natural partners.”

He said ongoing talks would “pave the way for unlocking the limitless potential of the India-US partnership” and that he, too, looked forward to speaking with Trump soon.

The public show of goodwill came after weeks of friction in bilateral ties.

Trump imposed a 25% reciprocal tariff on Indian imports and later doubled duties to 50% over its Russian crude purchase, saying talks would not move forward until issues were resolved.

The Trump administration has also sharpened its criticism of India’s oil purchases. White House trade adviser Peter Navarro accused New Delhi of acting as a “laundromat for the Kremlin” by refining and reselling Russian crude.

Navarro went further in an interview with Bloomberg TV, calling Russia’s invasion of Ukraine “Modi’s war” and arguing that India’s purchases were bankrolling Moscow’s military campaign.