New Delhi is concerned about a bill to impose 500% tariffs on countries that buy Russian oil

New Delhi has expressed its concerns with Washington over a bill that proposes to impose 500% tariffs on countries that are doing business with Russia, Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar said on Wednesday.

Jaishankar, who was in Washington for a foreign ministers meeting of the Quad (a grouping of India, Japan, the US and Australia), said that India, a major buyer of Russian oil, was aware of the potential implications of the proposed bill. 

"Regarding Senator Lindsey Graham's bill, any development which is happening in the US Congress is of interest to us if it impacts our interest or could impact our interest," the Indian foreign minister said at a press briefing. "I think our concerns and our interests in energy security have been made conversant to him. So, we will then have to cross that bridge when we come to it, if we come to it."

The bill is part of a broader effort to pressure Russia, amid ongoing tensions related to the Ukraine conflict. Graham has said that it "will be a tool in (US President Donald Trump's) toolbox to bring Russian President Vladimir Putin to the table."

Indian diplomats and officials are in touch with the Republican senator who sponsored the bill, which has Trump's backing, according to the news outlet India Today. Since 2022, India and China have significantly increased their oil purchases from Russia. In May, New Delhi emerged as the second-largest buyer of Russian fossil fuels, with estimated purchases totaling $4.9 billion, of which crude constituted about 72% of the total value, according to the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air.

India has purchased 80% of Russia's seaborne Urals crude exports this year, with two private refineries increasingly buying more of this variety. The US and India are engaged in negotiations for a trade agreement and are racing to meet a July 9 deadline set by Trump, in order to avoid reciprocal tariffs.