New York/Washington: The US has asked G7 countries to impose tariffs on countries purchasing oil from Russia, asserting that only “unified efforts” that cut off funding to Moscow’s war machine at source can apply sufficient pressure to end “the senseless killing.”
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and the United States Trade Representative Ambassador Jamieson Greer were on a call with G7 Finance Ministers on Friday when they reiterated President Donald Trump’s call to the bloc’s partners about imposing tariffs on countries purchasing oil from Russia.
François-Philippe Champagne, Canada’s Minister of Finance and National Revenue, chaired a meeting of G7 Finance Ministers to discuss further measures to increase pressure on Russia to end its war against Ukraine.
G7 is an intergovernmental bloc of rich, industrialised countries comprising the United States, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the UK. Canada is the head of the rolling G7 presidency this year.
“During today’s call with G7 Finance Ministers, Secretary Bessent reiterated President Trump’s call to our G7 partners that, if they are truly committed to ending the war in Ukraine, they should join the United States in imposing tariffs on countries purchasing oil from Russia,” a US Treasure Department statement said after the call.
The statement did not name any country. But the US has often blamed India and China for purchasing Russian oil even when there are no tariffs on Beijing for it.
“Only with a unified effort that cuts off the revenues funding (Russian President Vladimir) Putin’s war machine at the source will we be able to apply sufficient economic pressure to end the senseless killing,” said Secretary Bessent and Ambassador Greer.
“Thanks to President Trump’s bold leadership, the United States has already taken dramatic action against the purchasers of Russian oil. We are encouraged by the assurances of our fellow G7 nations that they are committed to ending this war, and we are hopeful that they will join us in taking decisive action at this critical time,” the statement added.
The US has doubled tariffs on Indian goods to a whopping 50 per cent, including a 25 per cent additional duty for India’s purchase of Russian crude oil, an action that New Delhi has described as “unfair, unjustified and unreasonable.”
India has been maintaining that its energy procurement, including buying oil from Russia, is driven by national interest and market dynamics.
India and the US have been negotiating a bilateral trade agreement since March. So far, five rounds of negotiations have been completed.
For the sixth round, the US team, which was to visit India last month, deferred its visit due to the imposition of a 50 per cent tariff on Indian goods by Washington.
Trade relations between the two countries have been strained due to the high tariffs. The two countries had earlier announced plans to conclude the first phase of the India-US bilateral trade agreement by the fall of 2025.
A statement from Champagne said, “Russia’s increasingly aggressive stance, including recent bombings in Ukraine and Wednesday’s violation of Polish airspace by Russian drones, and its unwillingness to agree to a ceasefire have prompted this G7 meeting.”
Canada, as part of its G7 Presidency, remains committed to working closely with G7 allies to increase pressure on Russia and support Ukraine’s long-term security and recovery, he said in the statement posted on X.
“G7 Ministers agreed to accelerate discussions to further use immobilised Russian sovereign assets to fund Ukraine’s defence, and to explore other mechanisms that would allow further increasing financial support to Ukraine,” it added.
Secretary Bessent and Ambassador Greer also welcomed commitments to increase sanctions pressure and explore using immobilised Russian sovereign assets to further benefit Ukraine’s defence, it said.
On Friday, President Trump, when asked in an interview with ‘Fox and Friends’ what clamping down on his Russian counterpart entails, said: “Look, India was their biggest customer. I put a 50 per cent tariff on India because they’re buying oil from Russia. That’s not an easy thing to do. That’s a big deal and it causes a rift with India.”
