India has indicated it will defy threats made by US President Donald Trump and continue buying Russian oil.
The world’s third-largest crude importer – after China and the US – cashed in on cheap Russian oil when its price plummeted after Vladimir Putin’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
Historically, it had bought most of its crude from countries in the Middle East.
But this changed after the invasion in February 2022, when western countries slapped sanctions on Russia in a bid to choke off money fuelling Moscow’s war chest.
It prompted the recent energy crisis that saw household bills in the UK soar.
On Friday, the Indian foreign ministry said its relationship with Russia was “steady and time-tested”, and warned against viewing it through the lens of another country.
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Addressing a weekly meeting, spokesman Randhir Jaiswal said India’s general position on procuring energy was guided by supply in the markets and prevailing global circumstances.
The sentiment was echoed by two further government sources cited by the Reuters news agency.
“These are long-term oil contracts,” one of the sources said. “It is not so simple to just stop buying overnight.”
India is highly dependent on oil imports, which supply 87% of its needs, according to the International Energy Agency.
The comments follow a threat made by President Trump to impose a 25% tariff on goods from India, as well as an additional import tax, because of New Delhi’s purchases of Russian oil.
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The US president made ending the war in Ukraine a top priority – pledging to do so within his first 24 hours in office.
But recently Mr Trump – who has repeatedly praised the Mr Putin over the years – has started to sour on the Russian leader for failing to agree to a ceasefire in Ukraine.
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He called it “disappointing” and also threatened new economic sanctions on Russia if progress is not made.
Mr Trump also this week said he had ordered two US nuclear submarines to be positioned in the “appropriate regions” in a row with former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev.
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The pressure on India comes after it upped it Russian crude purchases from 68,000 barrels per day in January 2022 to 1.12 million barrels per day by June that year.
Supplies rose as high as nearly 40% of India’s imports at one point, making Russia the largest supplier of crude to New Delhi, according to the Press Trust of India, citing data from analytics firm Kpler.
Home to 1.3 billion people, India is expected to become an even bigger oil consumer over the remainder of the decade, fuelled by spectacular growth in its economy, as well as rising population and demographics.
Demand has been rising fastest for petrol, with rising household incomes sparking a boom in motorcycle and car ownership.
