'Why should the US bear the burden?': Treasury chief Bessent says Europe refused tariffs on India, China over Russia

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has said European countries refused Washington's request to impose secondary tariffs on India and China for buying Russian oil. He questioned why the United States should bear the economic burden of putting pressure on Russia alone.

In an interview with NBC, Bessent said the Trump administration had approached its European allies in the spring to seek joint action against countries importing Russian energy.

“So we have asked—in the spring, I asked our European allies to join us in putting secondary tariffs on China, on India. They refused. So why should the US bear the burden?” Bessent said.

Trump wants Ukraine war to end, says Bessent

Bessent said US President Donald Trump wanted the fighting in Ukraine to stop. He also referred to proposed sanctions legislation that would give the administration time to assess the situation before deciding on further action.

“President Trump has made it clear he wants the killing to stop. And the so-called Graham bill gives the president the flexibility, gives him 60 days to assess the situation,” he said.

The proposed legislation would provide the US administration with a 60-day period to assess developments before deciding how to proceed.

Bessent criticises Europe over Russian energy purchases

Bessent also criticised European countries for continuing to buy Russian energy, pointing to shipments from Russia's Yamal facility.

“In the first 6 months of the year, there were 140 cargoes that left. 136 of those went to Europe—to Belgium, to Spain, to France, to the Netherlands—over USD 8 billion,” he said.

He argued that European countries had continued to provide Russia with substantial revenue through energy purchases while also supporting Ukraine in its war against Russia.

His remarks come after Trump temporarily waived certain sanctions and tariff provisions under the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, allowing the administration 60 days to assess the potential economic consequences of implementing the measures.

The legislation would have allowed tariffs of up to 100 per cent on goods imported into the United States from the five largest importers of Russian-origin crude oil or natural gas, including India and China.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Saturday described India as an important ally, saying Washington needed to consider its energy requirements before imposing tariffs or sanctions.

“These sanctions were not just sanctions on Russia. They include tariffs on a number of countries—India, for example, and others,” Rubio said, adding that the administration wanted to evaluate the implications for the global and US economies.

Rubio also noted that countries such as India had diversified their energy supplies but could not immediately stop importing Russian energy.

The US administration's decision comes amid continuing pressure on global energy supplies due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict and escalating tensions in the Middle East.

Bessent said Washington could engage with European partners again, questioning why the United States should act alone in imposing economic pressure on Moscow.

(With inputs from news agency ANI)

About the Author

For about a decade, Livemint—News Desk has been a credible source for authentic and timely news, and well-researched analysis on national news, business, personal finance, corporates, politics and geopolitics. We bring the latest updates on all the listed companies on BSE and NSE, startups, mutual funds, Union ministries, geopolitics, and untapped human interest stories from around the world, helping our readers to stay informed on the latest developments around the globe. Our Coverage Areas 1. Companies: Comprehensive news and analysis on listed and unlisted companies, corporate announcements, corporate chatter, C-suite, business trends, hiring alerts, layoffs, work-life balance, world's top billionaires and richest and more. 2. Personal finance: Insights into mutual funds, small savings schemes like - PPF, SSY, post office savings scheme, stock to watch, personal loans, credit cards, top bank FDs, real estate, income tax and more. 3. Politics: Comprehensive coverage of general elections, state elections and bypolls, Lok Sabha, Vidhan Sabha, Parliament, PMO, PIB, finance ministry, home ministry, among other union ministries and government departments. 4. National News: From metro cities like Delhi, Mumbai, and e to untapped stories from rural India, we cover human interest, health, education, crime and courts, and law and order, among other areas of public interest. 5. Economy: In-depth analysis of India's macro and micro-economic indicators like- GDP, inflation, forex, fiscal deficit, current account deficit, interest rate cycle, economic recovery, RBI circulars, indirect taxes, GST, Insolvency and Bankruptcy imports, exports and everything that impacts Indian economy. 6. Geopolitics: Well-rounded and deeply researched coverage on US News, Oval Office European Union, Ukraine Russia War, middle-east crisis, royal families and global leaders like - Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, Kim Jong Un, Xi Jinping and premiers of other leading economies in the world. Meet the Team 1. Gulam Jeelani, Political Affairs Editor 2. Sugam Singhal, Senior Assistant Editor 3. Chanchal, Assistant Editor 4. Sanchari Ghosh, Chief Content Producer 5. Pratik Prashant Mukane, Chief Content Producer 6. Sayantani Biswas, Chief Content Producer 7. Ravi Hari, Deputy Chief Content Producer 8. Garvit Bhirani, Deputy Chief Content Producer 9. Akriti Anand, Senior Content Producer 10. Jocelyn Felix Fernandes, Senior Content Producer 11. Swastika Das Sharma, Content Producer 12. Mausam Jha, Content Producer 13. Riya R Alex, Trainee Content Producer