New York, Aug 5 (PTI) The US should not burn its relationship with a “strong ally like India” and give a pass to China, Indian-American Republican leader Nikki Haley said on Tuesday, amid President Donald Trump's attacks against New Delhi over tariffs and purchases of Russian oil.

“India should not be buying oil from Russia. But China, an adversary and the number one buyer of Russian and Iranian oil, got a 90-day tariff pause," Haley said in a post on X.

"Don’t give China a pass and burn a relationship with a strong ally like India,” she said.

Haley, the former Governor of South Carolina, was the US Ambassador to the United Nations under Trump's first presidential term, becoming the first Indian-American to be appointed to a cabinet-level post in the US administration.

In 2013, she officially announced her candidacy for the 2024 presidential election and withdrew from the race in March last year.  Her comments came hours after Trump said India has not been a "good trading partner" and announced he will raise tariffs on India “very substantially over the next 24 hours” because New Delhi is buying Russian oil and "fueling" the "war machine".

India on Monday mounted an unusually sharp counterattack on the US and the European Union for their "unjustified and unreasonable" targeting of New Delhi for its procurement of Russian crude oil.

New Delhi's response came after Trump asserted that Washington will substantially raise tariffs on goods from India over its energy ties with Russia.

Meanwhile, Trump, in an interview with CNBC responded to a question on China and its leader, Xi Jinping, and said, “We have a very good relationship”.

Trump added that he might have a meeting with the Chinese President “before the end of the year, most likely, if we make a deal." He said he won't have a meeting if a deal doesn't materialise.

"But we're getting very close to a deal. We're getting along with China very well.” Trump added that China is “very reliant" on the US. “My relationship with them is very good. I think we'll make a good deal. It's not imperative, but I think we're going to make a good deal.” He added that he has had a “great relationship” with President Xi. “We respect him a lot. They respect us a lot.” PTI YAS GRS GRS GRS GRS

Tariff policy tension risks straining strategic relations as differential treatment of trading partners is criticized. Statements by US political figures focus on differential tariff treatment and energy procurement from Russia, with Nikki Haley urging against preferential treatment of China to avoid harming a strategic ally and calling for consistent enforcement of tariff policy; the President signals tariff increases on India over its energy purchases while maintaining a pragmatic posture toward China, and India rejects external criticism of its procurement decisions.