Kathmandu. After coming to the White House last year, US President Donald Trump began targeting Russia’s energy exports to stop the war in Ukraine. This included imposing tough sanctions on Russia and punitive tariffs on countries such as India, which buys Russian oil. However, despite Trump’s efforts, Russia has not been weakened.
In fact, Russia has now found its way around U.S. sanctions. Russia is now using gold to finance its transactions with India. According to Russia’s RIA Novosti news agency, Russia exported more than $ 50 million worth of gold to India in the first 10 months of last year.
“Deliveries resumed in August 2025 with shipments worth $23.4 million,” the Russian agency said, citing data from India’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry. This is the largest since 2021. Another $26.9 million in gold was sent in October. ’
Tariff on India on Russian oil
In August, the US President imposed an additional 25% tariff on India for buying Russian oil. This brought the total US tariffs on India to 50 per cent. Which is the highest in the world. This tariff is still in force.
The Trump administration has claimed that the purchase of Russian oil will fund Putin to continue his war in Ukraine. However, India has reduced its purchases of Russian oil after the imposition of US tariffs.
Russia Selling Foreign Exchange and Gold Reserves
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Earlier this week, a Russian media report said Russia would intensify the sale of foreign currency from its national wealth fund. It is also preparing to withdraw gold from its gold reserves. The decision was taken due to a decline in oil and gas export earnings following US sanctions.
According to a report in the Moscow Times, Russia’s finance ministry plans to sell $165 million worth of Chinese yuan and gold every day from January 16 to February 5. This total sales will be $ 2.48 billion. This is more than the amount of gold sold during the Covid-19 crisis.
The same report said that Russia has sold about 60% of its gold reserves in the last four years.
