President Donald Trump threatened Monday to hike US tariffs on goods from India over its purchases of Russian oil, a key source of revenue for Moscow's war on Ukraine.
New Delhi quickly pushed back, saying the move was unjustified and vowing to protect its interests.
Trump's heightened pressure on India comes after he signaled fresh sanctions on Moscow if it did not make progress by Friday towards a peace deal with Kyiv, more than three years since Russia's invasion.
Moscow is anticipating talks this week with the US leader's special envoy Steve Witkoff, who is expected to meet President Vladimir Putin.
On Monday, Trump said in a post to his Truth Social platform that India was "buying massive amounts of Russian Oil" and selling it for "big profits."
"They don't care how many people in Ukraine are being killed by the Russian War Machine," Trump added.
"Because of this, I will be substantially raising the Tariff paid by India to the USA."
He did not provide details on what tariff level he had in mind.
Even before the threat, an existing 10 percent US tariff on Indian products is expected to rise to 25 percent this week.
"The targeting of India is unjustified and unreasonable," India Foreign Ministry spokesman Randhir Jaiswal said in a statement after Trump's announcement.
"Like any major economy, India will take all necessary measures to safeguard its national interests and economic security."
India has become a major buyer of Russian oil, providing a much-needed export market for Moscow after it was cut off from traditional buyers in Europe because of the war.
That has drastically reshaped energy ties, with India saving itself billions of dollars while bolstering Moscow's coffers.
But India argued it "began importing from Russia because traditional supplies were diverted to Europe after the outbreak of the conflict."
The world's most populous country is not an export powerhouse, but the United States is its largest trading partner.
AFP
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