Standoff on Russian oil: Do not waver, resolve it

As trade talks between India and the US enter their final lap, testy grumbles from the White House—aimed ostensibly at influencing the final shape of an agreement—could end up creating schisms in the relationship between the world's two largest democracies.

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US President Donald Trump's recent denunciation of India's trade framework, expressed mostly on social media in rapid bursts, is well within his usual range of bluster, but cannot be shrugged off. One post threatened a hefty 25% levy on Indian exports and an unspecified penalty for buying oil and arms from Russia. Next, he called the economies of India and Russia "dead." Not one to rest on his outbursts, Trump followed that up with another threat to raise levies "substantially" for buying Russian oil and a statement on TV saying, "India has not been a good trading partner." As former US deputy assistant secretary of state Evan A. Feigenbaum has cautioned, Trump's statements risk taking apart painstakingly forged bilateral ties. On its part, India has called the US posture "unjustified and unreasonable." Amid this standoff, it seems clear that Trump wants us to import hydrocarbons from the US, with such a commitment baked into the deal that's b