US slams EU-India FTA, claims Europe is funding war against itself

Europe may have significantly phased out direct energy ties with Moscow, but US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the money was still flowing. He accused European buyers of indirectly funding the Russia-Ukraine war by purchasing oil products refined in India from Russian crude, even as the US targeted New Delhi with tariffs. Bessent’s remarks come as New Delhi and Brussels are set to formally announce the conclusion of negotiations on a comprehensive free trade agreement at a high-level summit on Tuesday.President Trump has worked to negotiate a settlement on the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Bessent noted, adding that the US has made “much bigger sacrifices” than the Europeans.“We have put 25 per cent tariffs on India for buying Russian oil. Guess what happened last week? The Europeans signed a trade deal with India,” US treasury secretary Scott Bessent said in an interview on Sunday. Bessent defended the Trump administration’s decision to impose steep tariffs on Indian goods, arguing that European governments are undermining their own security stance through continued energy trade. Bessent theorised that European countries are financing a war “against themselves” by purchasing refined Russian oil products from India. "Just to be clear again, the Russian oil goes into India, the refined products come out, and the Europeans buy the refined products. They are financing the war against themselves,” he said, adding that under Trump's leadership, “we will eventually end” the Russia-Ukraine war.