US Secretary of State Says India Willing to Stop Importing Russian Oil

United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said that India has committed to stopping its purchases of Russian oil, just days after New Delhi reaffirmed that “national interest” would be the “determining factor” in its energy procurement decisions.

US President Donald Trump, when announcing a trade deal with New Delhi in early February, stated that India had agreed not to purchase crude oil from Russia. Since then, the US has publicly made this claim on several occasions.

Speaking at the Munich Security Conference on Saturday, Rubio responded to a question about the Russia-Ukraine war and sanctions imposed on Moscow by saying, “In our conversations with India, we have secured their commitment to stop purchasing additional Russian oil.”

When asked at the same conference whether the trade deal with the US would affect energy relations with Russia, Indian External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar previously said India remained committed to strategic autonomy.

“Because that is part of our history and evolution. It is something very deep, and something that cuts across the political spectrum as well,” he emphasised.

Jaishankar described the global oil market as complex and dynamic. “Oil companies in India, like in Europe, and perhaps in other parts of the world, look at availability, look at cost, look at risk, and take decisions that they feel are most beneficial for them,” Jaishankar said.

Following the announcement of the deal, Trump signed an executive order revoking the additional 25 per cent tariffs on India that he had imposed in August over its procurement of crude oil from Russia.

Previously, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov noted that no one other than US officials had spoken about the possibility of India halting Russian oil imports. He added that the Indian government had never made such a statement.