NEW DELHI: India on Saturday did not confirm or deny whether it has decided to stop buying Russian crude oil after the US lifted a 25 percent punitive tariff on Indian goods for buying petroleum products from Russia.
There is no clarity on whether India will stop buying Russian crude oilUS President Donald Trump signed an executive order to remove the 25 percent additional tariffs.
The move comes days after the US president announced a trade deal with India and said Washington would cut tariffs on Indian goods from 50 percent to 18 percent in exchange for India stopping buying Russian oil and lowering trade barriers.
“Specifically, India has committed to stop directly or indirectly importing oil from the Russian Federation, has represented that it will purchase US energy products from the United States, and recently committed to a framework with the United States to expand defense cooperation over the next 10 years,” Trump said in the executive order.
If the US Commerce Secretary finds that India has resumed importing Russian oil directly or indirectly, Trump’s team will recommend “whether and to what extent I will take additional measures for India, including whether I will reimpose an additional 25 percent ad valorem rate on imports of Indian goods,” the order said.
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However, there was no clear response from Indian officials on Trump’s comments that India was stopping buying Russian crude oil.
When asked about Trump’s remarks, an official referred to remarks by External Affairs Ministry spokesman Randhir Jaiswal on Thursday.
“On India’s energy sources, the government has publicly stated on several occasions that ensuring energy security to 1.4 billion Indians is the highest priority of the government,” Jaiswal said.
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“Diversifying our energy sources in line with environmental market conditions and developing international mobility is at the core of our strategy to ensure this. All India’s steps have been and will be taken with this in mind,” he said.
India’s purchase of Russian oil has become a thorny issue in relations between New Delhi and Washington, with many American officials complaining that it is fueling Moscow’s war machine against Ukraine.
New Delhi rejects allegations that its energy procurement is driven by national interests and market dynamics.
India turned to buying Russian oil sold at a discount after Western countries imposed sanctions on Moscow and cut off its supplies over its invasion of Ukraine in February, 2022.
India’s Russian crude oil procurement has fallen sharply in the last few weeks.
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