Sep 17, 2026 16:10 pm IST

Opinion | US Has Institutionally Weaponised India's Russia Oil Dependence. Can New Delhi Cope?

A new legislation can connect India's Russian energy purchases to its access to the American market over a five-year period

Brig (Retd) Anil Raman Brig (Retd) Anil Raman Columnist

Brig (Retd) Anil Raman Columnist

The US House of Representatives has passed the Lindsey O Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026. The 262-159 vote followed the Senate's 86-11 approval in August. The bill is now with President Donald Trump. For India, the significance lies less in the headline figure of a possible 100% tariff than in the mechanism Congress has created. The legislation can connect India's Russian energy purchases to its access to the American market over a five-year period.

My earlier analysis focused on India's opportunity to influence the legislation before Congress completed its work. That phase has now ended. The question is how India manages a relationship in which economic pressure over Russia has moved from executive action into legislation.

Presidential Action to Statutory Authority

The Trump administration had already demonstrated that Russian oil could become an issue in the US-India relationship. Presidential tariff measures could be changed through executive action and negotiated between governments.

The Graham Act establishes a different framework. Section 113 authorises duties of up to 100% on goods imported from countries meeting specified conditions relating to Russian crude, natural gas, or sanctions evasion. The legislation also provides for reassessments every 180 days based on the preceding 12 months of trade data.

That gives the issue a recurring institutional dimension.

India's position can thus be reassessed periodically. The five-year sunset provision extends the framework beyond the immediate circumstances surrounding its passage.

This is the significant........

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