Trump imposes tariffs on India to pressure Russia over Ukraine war issue

Trump imposed tariffs on India to discourage Russia from getting involved in the Ukraine conflict, White House Press Secretary Carolyn Leavitt said. Leavitt said this at a press briefing on Tuesday (August 19) local time. Trump doubled the Indian tariffs to 50 percent by imposing an additional 25 percent tariff on New Delhi on top of the 25 percent previously announced. Leavitt said in his press briefing that the purpose behind the sanctions was to create a second round of pressure on Russia. Leavitt said, “The president has created tremendous pressure from the public to stop this war. As you have seen, he has taken sanctions on India and other measures. He has made it very clear that he wants to see an end to this war. He dismissed the idea of those who wanted to say we should wait a little longer. Earlier, after meeting with Putin, Trump met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the White House, where Trump signaled his openness to a trilateral meeting to end the war in Ukraine. Leavitt said that Trump’s relentless efforts to make peace led to European leaders arriving at the White House within 48 hours of his meeting with Putin. Meanwhile, Leavitt reiterated the White House’s claim that if Trump had been president at the time, the war in Ukraine would never have happened. President Putin has acknowledged that. At the briefing, a reporter asked what Trump planned to do to ensure Ukraine’s security guarantees even after his presidency, Leavitt replied that Trump understood the need for a lasting peace and was in talks with European leaders and NATO to achieve this goal.