A US-India trade deal could protect India from the full 100 per cent tariff authorised under the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026. Sources close to the talks told The HinduBusinessLine that a negotiated deal would cap the amount mentioned in the law.

President Donald Trump signed the Graham Act into law on September 18 after the House passed it 262-159. The law lets the US president raise tariffs by up to 100 per cent on imports from the largest buyers of Russian oil and gas, a list that includes India. India is the second-largest buyer of Russian crude after China.

The sources said the law authorises the tariff but does not force the president to impose it. This gives the White House room to negotiate. The law will not override a trade deal, the sources said, and would also shield India from a pending Section 301 probe on excess capacity.

Delaying a deal leaves India more exposed, the sources warned. Every week without an agreement, India may grow more vulnerable to other pending US trade actions.