UPSC Prelims Practice Questions — How will the U.S.’s Sanctioning Act affect India?
Q1. With reference to the operative tariff provisions of the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026, consider the following statements:
1. It authorises ad valorem duties of up to 500 per cent on goods of the Russian Federation.
2. It authorises ad valorem duties of up to 100 per cent on goods of countries identified as the largest importers of Russian crude oil or natural gas.
3. Once the Act is in force, the duties on such importing countries take effect automatically, the President having no discretion over the rate.
4. It carries a sunset clause under which its sanctions and tariff measures terminate five years after enactment.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- It authorises ad valorem duties of up to 500 per cent on goods of the Russian Federation.
- It authorises ad valorem duties of up to 100 per cent on goods of countries identified as the largest importers of Russian crude oil or natural gas.
- Once the Act is in force, the duties on such importing countries take effect automatically, the President having no discretion over the rate.
- It carries a sunset clause under which its sanctions and tariff measures terminate five years after enactment.
- A. 1 and 2 only
- B. 1, 2 and 4 only
- C. 2, 3 and 4 only
- D. 1 and 4 only
Q2. Consider the following, with reference to the categories against which the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026 directs punitive measures:
1. Russian banks and other financial institutions.
2. Vessels engaged in the Russian 'shadow fleet' oil trade.
3. A country whose imports of Russian natural gas over a 12-month period amount to less than 15 per cent of Russia's total natural gas exports in that period and which has taken significant steps to reduce them.
4. The Russian President, senior officials of his government, and oligarchs.
Which of the above is/are NOT correctly identified as a target of the Act?
- Russian banks and other financial institutions.
- Vessels engaged in the Russian 'shadow fleet' oil trade.
- A country whose imports of Russian natural gas over a 12-month period amount to less than 15 per cent of Russia's total natural gas exports in that period and which has taken significant steps to reduce them.
- The Russian President, senior officials of his government, and oligarchs.
- A. 1 only
- B. 2 and 4
- C. 1, 2 and 4
- D. 3 only
Q3. Consider the following statements regarding the passage of the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026 through the United States Congress:
1. In its original form the measure was titled the 'Sanctioning Russia Act', the Iran component being added only later.
2. The Senate cleared the measure in August 2026 by 86 votes to 11.
3. The House of Representatives cleared the measure on 16 September 2026 by 262 votes to 159.
4. Senator Lindsey Graham, the measure's principal sponsor, personally cast his vote in favour of it when the Senate took it up in August 2026.
Which of the above is/are NOT correct?
- In its original form the measure was titled the 'Sanctioning Russia Act', the Iran component being added only later.
- The Senate cleared the measure in August 2026 by 86 votes to 11.
- The House of Representatives cleared the measure on 16 September 2026 by 262 votes to 159.
- Senator Lindsey Graham, the measure's principal sponsor, personally cast his vote in favour of it when the Senate took it up in August 2026.
- A. 1 and 4
- B. 2 only
- C. 4 only
- D. 1, 2 and 3
Q4. The 'and Iran' component that was added to the Bill during its passage operates principally by which one of the following means?
- A. Amending Section 13(b) of the Iran Sanctions Act of 1996 to push its expiry from 2026 to 2031
- B. Restoring the United Nations 'snapback' measures suspended under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action of 2015
- C. Designating the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a foreign terrorist organisation for a further five years
- D. Extending the Comprehensive Iran Sanctions, Accountability and Divestment Act of 2010 to buyers of Russian crude
Q5. In the financial year 2025-26 (FY2026), which one of the following was the single largest source of India's crude oil imports by value?
- A. Iraq
- B. Saudi Arabia
- C. Russia
- D. The United States
Q6. Indian refiners' intake of Russian crude oil touched a record monthly high in July 2026. According to Kpler, approximately how large was this intake?
- A. About 1.8 million barrels per day
- B. About 2.2 million barrels per day
- C. About 2.8 million barrels per day
- D. About 3.6 million barrels per day
Q7. Consider the following statements comparing the United States' 2025 tariff action against India with the tariff authority created by the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026:
1. The additional 25 per cent duty that took the headline US tariff on most Indian goods to 50 per cent came into effect on 27 August 2025.
2. Pharmaceuticals, smartphones and petroleum products were granted exemptions from that 2025 tariff action.
3. Duties imposed under the 2026 Act would supersede and replace the 2025 duties, so that the maximum cumulative US duty on Indian goods would remain 50 per cent.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- The additional 25 per cent duty that took the headline US tariff on most Indian goods to 50 per cent came into effect on 27 August 2025.
- Pharmaceuticals, smartphones and petroleum products were granted exemptions from that 2025 tariff action.
- Duties imposed under the 2026 Act would supersede and replace the 2025 duties, so that the maximum cumulative US duty on Indian goods would remain 50 per cent.
- A. 1 only
- B. 1 and 2 only
- C. 2 and 3 only
- D. 1, 2 and 3
Q8. In the context of recent United States trade measures aimed at purchasers of Russian energy, a 'secondary tariff' is best described as which one of the following?
- A. A duty levied on a third country's exports to the United States on account of that country's trade with a sanctioned state
- B. A duty levied on the sanctioned state's own exports, over and above the ordinary most-favoured-nation rate applicable to them
- C. An extra duty levied on goods re-exported after undergoing substantial transformation in an intermediate country
- D. A countervailing duty levied to offset subsidies extended by a sanctioned state to its own energy exporting firms
Q9. In its September 2026 response to the passage of the Act, the Ministry of External Affairs characterised the basis on which India makes its crude oil sourcing decisions as which one of the following?
- A. Diversified sourcing on the basis of evolving market dynamics, to secure energy for its people
- B. Preferential sourcing from strategic partners under long-term government-to-government supply contracts
- C. Sourcing directed by the principle of strategic autonomy and routed exclusively through state-owned refiners
- D. Sourcing calibrated to the net-zero-by-2070 commitment and the target of cutting import dependence
Q10. Consider the following as elements of the official Indian response to the passage of the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act of 2026:
1. A reaffirmation of India's commitment to the energy security of its 1.4 billion people through diversified sourcing.
2. A statement that the implications of the legislation had already been conveyed at senior levels of the United States administration.
3. An assurance that the Government would work closely with Indian trade and industry bodies in dealing with the implications.
4. An announcement that India would challenge the measure before the Dispute Settlement Body of the World Trade Organization as an illegal unilateral trade measure.
Which of the above is/are NOT correct?
- A reaffirmation of India's commitment to the energy security of its 1.4 billion people through diversified sourcing.
- A statement that the implications of the legislation had already been conveyed at senior levels of the United States administration.
- An assurance that the Government would work closely with Indian trade and industry bodies in dealing with the implications.
- An announcement that India would challenge the measure before the Dispute Settlement Body of the World Trade Organization as an illegal unilateral trade measure.
- A. 1 and 2
- B. 2 and 3
- C. 4 only
- D. 1, 3 and 4
Q11. Under the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act, 2017, a person determined to have knowingly engaged in a 'significant transaction' with the defence or intelligence sectors of the Russian Government is, under Section 231, to be visited with which one of the following?
- A. At least five of the menu of sanctions enumerated in Section 235 of the Act
- B. Every one of the sanctions enumerated in Section 235 of the Act
- C. A mandatory ad valorem duty of not less than 25 per cent on that person's exports to the United States
- D. An asset freeze declared under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, 1977, without any further determination
Q12. The dual containment of Russia and Iran sought by the Act of 2026 is operationalised through a periodic determination, made once every 180 days, of the five largest importers of Russian crude oil and natural gas. This determination is entrusted to which one of the following?
- A. The Office of Foreign Assets Control in the Department of the Treasury
- B. The United States Trade Representative, in consultation with the Departments of State and Energy
- C. The Bureau of Industry and Security in the Department of Commerce
- D. The Energy Information Administration in the Department of Energy