Washington: US has taken note of India’s warning that the passage of Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act - which threatens up to 100% tariffs on the top 5 purchasers of Russian energy that likely includes India - could have an adverse impact on the US-India relationship, a senior US State Department official indicated.
“Of course, the Indian government has to respond. Congress took a pretty hard approach, especially publicly. You had members of Congress calling out India in particular, so of course India has to respond. We understand that they have a domestic constituency, as do we. Like there’s no sort of hard feelings on any of that kind of activity,” said the official.
Following the passage of the Russia sanctions bill in the US House of Representatives, India’s Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) released a statement warning of the legislation’s potential impact on the US-India relationship.
“This issue has been discussed at high levels in recent months with various US interlocutors. Its potential implications for not just the bilateral relationship but also the international energy market have been very clearly articulated by the Indian side,” the MEA said in its statement.
However, the senior US official also explained that the passage of the bill gave President Donald Trump a tool that came with a “broad national security waiver”. The official refrained from commenting on whether India would receive such a waiver but pointed out there were scenarios in which the US commander-in-chief would utilise the waiver authority.
{{/usCountry}}However, the senior US official also explained that the passage of the bill gave President Donald Trump a tool that came with a “broad national security waiver”. The official refrained from commenting on whether India would receive such a waiver but pointed out there were scenarios in which the US commander-in-chief would utilise the waiver authority.
{{/usCountry}}The Russia sanctions act was also discussed during a meeting between External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. According to the US State Department’s readout of the meeting, Secretary Rubio also pointed out that Washington could be “well positioned” to help countries meet their energy security needs.
Asked about whether this meant the United States would help India diversify its energy sources in the context on Russian energy purchases, the senior US State Department official said: “India has been looking for a long time to diversify its energy sources. They’re a country that has massive energy needs..Unfortunately, Venezuelan oil was cut off, Iran was cut off, and so the options were very limited. Now, with President Trump’s incredibly successful operation in Venezuela, we are moving into a better position that countries like India are going to be able to get access to that market, and that’s something the Secretary (Rubio) has talked about publicly that he’s working tirelessly on, and the Indians are very interested.”
The official also pointed to Washington’s continued investment in the relationship with India, including through the Quad which has met regularly throughout 2026. The official also pointed to Secretary Rubio’s upcoming visit to India in October, which will be his second visit to India this year.