‘Not meant to harm India’: Marco Rubio breaks silence on Trump’s tariff threat

Speaking to The Indian Express, Rubio said the India-US trade deal could be finalised within weeks.

Marco Rubio at Mumbai during his two-day India visit. Photo: Secretary Marco Rubio/X

"I think we're incredibly close. The way I would say it is, we are weeks, not months, away from, I think, finalising it. I think 99 percent of the work is done... I feel very positive of the trajectory that it's on," Rubio said, as quoted by NDTV.

US tariffs on Russian oil could affect India ties

Rubio acknowledged that Washington's threat to impose 100% tariffs on countries purchasing Russian oil could affect its relationship with India.

However, he clarified that the move was not intended to "harm" New Delhi.

Referring to US President Donald Trump's decision last week to grant tariff waivers, Rubio said the measures were part of Washington's broader foreign policy approach amid the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.

"None of these tariffs are meant to punish or harm India. They are part of a broader foreign policy that, unfortunately, involves a war going on between Russia and Ukraine that we would like to see come to an end," he said.

Trump faced criticism over tariff waivers

Rubio said Trump had faced criticism within the US political system and media after issuing the waivers and refraining from imposing tariffs mandated under a law passed by Congress.

"And I'm sure you saw it in our media and our political system (that), when the President issued those waivers and did not impose the tariffs required under a law passed by our Congress, he got criticism for doing it.

"But one of the reasons why he didn't impose them is because he understands that it would have a very detrimental impact on a very important relationship with India," the US Secretary of State added.

Marco Rubio with India's External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and others. Photo: Secretary Marco Rubio/X 

Trump suspended the measure that threatened to impose 100 per cent tariffs on India and other major buyers of Russian crude oil, citing the national interests of the United States.

However, the move does not permanently scrap the proposed Russia-related tariffs. Their implementation has been suspended, leaving Trump free to impose them at a later date.

Trump signed the Graham Act into law on September 18, 2026.

Section 115 of the legislation authorises the President to waive sanctions against foreign persons, restrictions on individuals and duties on goods, provided he submits a written certification to Congress stating that the waiver is in the national interests of the United States.