India, April 16 -- US treasury secretary Scott Bessent said on Wednesday that the US will not extend the temporary sanctions waiver it announced after the war in West Asia began. It is difficult to say whether Bessent and his president really mean this or if they are using it to pressure the Iranian regime in the ongoing negotiations. Given that Donald Trump has announced a blockade of Iran's blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, even as Iran continues to export oil, the signalling aspect of the announcement cannot be ruled out. Last year, Trump unfairly imposed an additional duty of 25% on India for importing Russian oil and claimed that this was intended to put pressure on Russia.

Buying things under US sanctions requires more than an asse...