President Donald Trump punished India by signing an executive order doubling tariffs on the South Asian democracy for continuing to purchase Russian oil amid the deadly war in Ukraine. Starting August 27th, India will face an additional 25 percent tariff if it continues to buy oil from Russia, making the total tariff rate a crushing 50 percent.

Trump coupled his new order with a threat to impose additional tariffs on other countries that purchase Russian fossil fuels . The executive order is a key part of the administration's increasingly muscular strategy to pressure the Kremlin to resolve the three-year war in Ukraine.

After years of cozying up to Vladimir Putin, Trump is now calling Russia an ' extraordinary threat ' to the US as the country repeatedly ignores his deadline to end the Ukrainian invasion. Previously, Trump gave the Kremlin until this Friday to agree to a ceasefire with Ukraine, or the US would begin implementing massive tariffs on Russia's main trading partners.

Trump's envoy Steve Witkoff met with Putin in Moscow on Wednesday for three hours. The Kremlin described the meeting as 'a very useful and constructive conversation.' The pair reportedly discussed ending the Ukrainian war as well as developing strategic cooperation between the United States and Russia.

But while Trump touted 'great progress,' there was no indication Putin was willing to end his furious campaign to take Ukraine. Trump previously imposed a 25 percent tariff last week on India citing unfair trade barriers. After Wednesday's executive order, the total tariffs on goods coming from India will rise to 50 percent – the highest levies on any US trading partner.

A statement from India's Ministry of External Affairs said that its energy imports help ensure the 'security of 1.4 billion people,' while indicating it did not intend to stop purchasing Russian oil. 'These actions are unfair, unjustified and unreasonable,' the statement says. China is the largest buyer of Russian oil and energy products in the world. Turkey is also a significant buyer, but the two countries have not faced additional tariffs so far.

When asked why the president did not place an additional tariff on China for their purchase of Russian oil, the White House did not respond at the time of publishing. Over the last eight months, India imported approximately 1.75 million barrels daily from Russia, which is up one percent from the same period last year. However, Trump did tease a threat to impose similar 25 percent tariffs on other large importers of Russian energy.

In his Wednesday executive order, the president directed administration officials to 'determine whether any other country is directly or indirectly importing Russian Federation oil,' and then decide if they should face economic punishments. Trump's congressional allies praised the president's drastic moves.

Republican South Carolina Senator Lindsey Graham wrote on X , 'I completely understand and applaud President @realDonaldTrump's decision to hit India with an additional 25 percent tariff ... because India insists on purchasing Putin's oil to prop up his war machine, allowing the bloodbath in Ukraine to continue.' 'President Trump has put the world on notice that if you continue to buy Putin's oil, you are no longer going to be allowed to have access to the American economy without substantial tariffs,' Graham added.

Nikki Haley, Trump's former United Nations ambassador and rival for the 2024 Republican nomination, agreed that India shouldn't be buying oil from Russia but warned Trump against burning a relationship with a strong ally. Trump's tariff bombshell lands just 48 hours before Trump's make-or-break Friday ultimatum to Putin—demanding Russia agree to Ukraine ceasefire talks or face a mammoth sanctions blitz.

The crackdown signals Trump is serious about wielding his tariff power to try to bend world leaders to his demands. Switzerland also looked like it would be a loser in Trump's trade war with its president reportedly ending her visit to Washington on Wednesday without a deal to lower its tariff rate.