With diplomatic efforts to end the Ukraine war faltering, President Donald Trump is turning to aggressive economic warfare, targeting Russia’s most powerful friends. He has formally asked the European Union to partner with the US in imposing tariffs as high as 100% on all imports from India and China. The strategy is a clear attempt to make their support for Vladimir Putin’s regime economically untenable.
This shift in strategy comes amid Trump’s vocal frustration over the failure to broker a peace agreement and a recent surge in Russian drone attacks on Ukraine. The proposal, made to visiting EU officials, is designed to exert maximum pressure not on Moscow directly, but on the economic pillars that help sustain its war effort. A US official confirmed the administration’s readiness to proceed, but only in concert with its European allies.
The focus on India and China is a direct reaction to their deepening ties with Russia, which Putin has actively cultivated. The US has already penalized India with a 50% tariff hike on its goods for buying Russian oil, demonstrating a low tolerance for activities seen as undermining sanctions. At the same time, this new pressure coincides with other global trade shifts, such as Mexico raising its own tariffs on Chinese automobiles to 50%.
However, this aggressive foreign policy maneuver is threatened by a domestic legal crisis. The Supreme Court is poised to rule on whether Trump has overstepped his presidential authority with his tariff policies. The administration publicly projects confidence, but Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has acknowledged the severe consequences of a loss, which would necessitate refunding tens of billions of dollars to importers.