After the US imposed a 50% tariff on India for buying Russian oil, many are questioning why China was spared such action despite being one of Russia’s biggest oil buyers.US President Donald Trump said on Friday (local time) that he does not see an immediate need to impose retaliatory tariffs on countries like China for purchasing Russian oil, but cautioned that such action could be taken “in two or three weeks,” Reuters reported.Earlier, Trump had announced a 25% additional tariff on India for buying Russian oil, accusing New Delhi of supporting Moscow’s ‘war machine.’ After Trump’s secondary tariffs, total duties for Indian exports to the US now stand at 50%.Trump has repeatedly threatened sanctions on Moscow and secondary sanctions on countries that continue to buy its oil if no moves are made to end the war in Ukraine. As for China, when asked by Fox News’ Sean Hannity on whether he was considering such action against Beijing after his summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Trump replied, “Well, because of what happened today, I think I don’t have to think about that.”“Now, I may have to think about it in two weeks or three weeks or something, but we don’t have to think about that right now. I think, you know, the meeting went very well.”Earlier in the day, Trump had described his meeting with Putin as “very productive,” but admitted that important issues remained unresolved and no formal agreement was reached.Ahead of the summit, Trump suggested that his tariff measures were already hurting Moscow by costing it a key customer. “Well, they lost an oil client so to speak, which is India, which was doing about 40% of the oil, China as you know is doing a lot…and if I did secondary sanctions, it would be devastating from their standpoint. If I have to do it, I’ll do it, maybe I won’t have to do it,” he said during an interview on Air Force One.When asked why India had been targeted first, while China continued buying Russian oil, Trump had replied, “You’re going to see a lot more…You’re going to see so much secondary sanctions.”The US president has warned that Chinese President Xi Jinping’s slowing economy will face further pressure if Washington follows through on ramping up Russia-related sanctions and tariffs. While Xi and Trump are in talks on a trade deal that could ease tensions and reduce import taxes between the world’s two largest economies, Beijing could become the next major target if Trump decides to step up punitive action.
