Donald Trump is considering imposing levies on China for purchasing oil from Russia, Vice President JD Vance has said, adding that the US President has “not made any firm decisions” yet.
“Well, the President said he’s thinking about it, but he hasn’t made any firm decisions,” Vance told Fox News during an interview on Sunday.
The Vice President made the remark in response to a question about whether Trump would impose levies on China, like India, for buying Russian oil. The US President last Wednesday announced doubling tariffs on India to 50% over its purchase of Russian oil.
“Obviously the China issue is a little bit more complicated because our relationship with China, it affects a lot of other things that have nothing to do with the Russian situation,” Vance said.
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Vance added that Trump is “reviewing his options, and of course, going to make that decision when he decides.”
The US had initially imposed 25 per cent reciprocal tariffs on India. However, last week he imposed another 25 per cent levies on Delhi for its purchases of Russian oil, bringing the total tariffs to 50 per cent, one of the highest among countries trading with the US. The additional 25 per cent tariff will come into effect from August 27. India has slammed the US move as “unfair, unjustified and unreasonable”.
‘Ukraine peace deal unlikely to satisfy either side’
The US Vice President also spoke on the upcoming meeting between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying a negotiated settlement between Russia and Ukraine was unlikely to satisfy either side. He further said that any peace deal will likely leave both Moscow and Kyiv “unhappy.”
“It’s not going to make anybody super happy. Both the Russians and the Ukrainians, probably, at the end of the day, are going to be unhappy with it,” Vance said.
Trump has said that he will meet with Russian President Putin on August 15 in Alaska to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine.
