"America is trying to bully India": Sikkim CM Prem Singh Tamang on US tariffs

Puri (Odisha) [India], August 29 (ANI): Sikkim Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang on Friday stated that the US is attempting to bully India by imposing a 50 per cent tariff on Indian imports. He urged the people to follow Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "vocal for local" call.
"America is trying to bully India. PM Narendra Modi has said that we will not come under any pressure and work for the welfare of our people. The call given by the Prime Minister to go 'vocal for local' shall be followed," Tamang told reporters after his visit to Jagannath Temple in Puri, Odisha.
"I have been able to come here after many years and offer prayers. I prayed for the Lord to bless the people of Sikkim and the country. I want to thank the administration and temple trust," he said.
Meanwhile, Senior Counsellor for Trade and Manufacturing at the White House, Peter Navarro, has again accused India of profiting from Russian oil in scathing remarks.
Navarro, considered the key driver behind the 50 per cent tariffs on India, said that India engaged in unfair trade, which the tariffs aim to curb.
In a post on X, he said, "President Trump's 50% tariffs on Indian imports are now in effect. This isn't just about India's unfair trade--it's about cutting off the financial lifeline India has extended to Putin's war machine."
"Here's how the India-Russia oil mathematics works: American consumers buy Indian goods while India keeps out U.S. exports through high tariffs and non-tariff barriers. India uses our dollars to buy discounted Russian crude. Indian refiners, with their silent Russian partners, refine and flip the black-market oil for big profits on the international market - while Russia pockets hard currency to fund its war on Ukraine," he said.
However, China, which is the biggest buyer of Russian oil, did not find a place in his arguments.
"Before Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Russian oil made up less than 1% of India's imports. Today? Over 30%--more than 1.5 million barrels a day. This surge isn't driven by domestic demand--it's driven by Indian profiteers and carries an added price of blood and devastation in Ukraine. India's Big Oil lobby has turned the largest democracy in the world into a massive refining hub and oil money laundromat for the Kremlin. Indian refiners buy cheap Russian oil, process it, and export fuels to Europe, Africa, and Asia--shielded from sanctions under the pretense of neutrality," he claimed. (ANI)