United States President Donald Trump on Wednesday issued an executive order imposing an additional 25% tariff on goods imported from India for purchasing Russian oil.

This raised the US tariff rate on Indian goods to 50%.

On July 30, Washington had announced a 25% levy on goods imported from India as part of the so-called reciprocal tariffs on dozens of countries that have not finalised separate trade agreements with the US.

The additional levy will take effect in 21 days.

In response, New Delhi said on Wednesday that it was “extremely unfortunate” that the US had chosen to impose additional tariffs on India “for actions that several other countries are also taking in their own national interest”.

“We reiterate that these actions are unfair, unjustified and unreasonable,” said the Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson. “India will take all actions necessary to protect its national interests."

Trump’s announcement of the additional levy came a day after he said that New Delhi had “not been a good trading partner”. He had said that Washington was going to raise the tariffs imposed on Indian goods “very substantially” within the next 24 hours.

The US president had also repeated his accusation that India’s purchase of Russian oil was “fuelling the war machine”.

Trump had been threatening to impose a penalty on India for buying a large portion of its military equipment and fuel from Russia amid the war on Ukraine.

On Monday too, he said that Washington would substantially increase the tariffs imposed on India because of New Delhi’s purchase and sale of Russian oil in the “open market for big profit”.

In response to the US president’s comments, New Delhi had said on Monday that the targeting of India by Washington and the European Union for importing oil from Russia was “unjustified and unreasonable”.

India’s Ministry of External Affairs stated that the nations criticising India were “themselves indulging in trade with Russia”.

While the 25% reciprocal tariff was to take effect on August 7, another executive order signed by Trump on July 31 had made no mention of the penalty.

That day, Trump had also said that he does not care about “what India does with Russia” and that “they can take their dead economies down together, for all I care”.

Also read: Russian oil imports: What are India’s options as US threatens further tariffs?