The Kremlin on Tuesday criticized US President Donald Trump’s threat to raise tariffs on India over its purchases of Russian oil, a key source of revenue for Moscow’s military offensive on Ukraine.
Trump has given Moscow until Friday to make progress on a peace deal with Kyiv or face NEW economic sanctions that could include punishments on countries that purchase Russia’s vital oil and gas exports.
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Trump on Monday specifically threatened India with higher tariffs, prompting New Delhi to brand any potential move “unjustified and unreasonable”.
Russia echoed that criticism Tuesday.
“Sovereign countries have the right to choose their own trading partners,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
Without naming Trump, he criticized calls to “force countries to sever trading relations” with Russia as “illegitimate”.
Ukraine’s Western allies have sought to hobble Russia’s export earnings since Moscow launched its military offensive in February 2022.
But Russia has been able to redirect energy sales away from Europe to other countries including India and China, ensuring the multibillion-dollar flow of funds has continued.
Trump has not levied new sanctions on Moscow since he returned to the White House in January.
He has forced the two sides to open direct peace talks for the first time in more than three years, but three rounds of negotiations in Istanbul have failed to make any meaningful progress.
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