'We Also Buy Oil From US, And That Has Increased': Jaishankar On India's Russian Oil Trade

(MENAFN- Live Mint) India's External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar firmly defended New Delhi's continued oil trade with Russia, stating that India is neither the largest importer of Russian crude nor isolated in its dealings with Moscow.

Addressing a press briefing in Russia, EAM Jaishankar emphasised that India has increased its oil imports from the United States as well , and has acted in accordance with national interest and global market stability.

“We also buy oil from the US, and that amount has increased,” Jaishankar said.

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The statement from EAM Jaishankar comes as India faces increased scrutiny from US over Russian oil trade . The United States has already imposed a 25 per cent tariff on Indian goods, with an additional 25 per cent set to take effect on 27 August, bringing the total hike to 50 per cent.

Washington has framed the move as a direct response to India's“increased purchases” of Russian oil during the Ukraine conflict.

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The minister was careful to underline that India is not overly reliant on any single source. In fact, Jaishankar noted, New Delhi has significantly increased its oil imports from the United States in recent years.

“We are not the biggest purchasers of Russian oil, that is China. We are not the biggest purchasers of LNG, that is the European Union. We are not the country which has the biggest trade surge with Russia after 2022; I think there are some countries to the South", Jaishankar said in Russia on August 21.

“We also buy oil from the US, and that amount has increased,” he added.

He further added that Washington itself has encouraged countries to adopt pragmatic approaches to energy security .

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EAM Jaishankar on 21 August, reminded,“The Americans have said for the last few years that we should do everything to stabilise the world energy market, including buying oil from Russia".

The EAM's statements seemed to echo a statement made by US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti in May 2024 .

“They (India) bought Russian oil because we wanted someone to buy Russian oil at a price cap – that was not a violation or anything, that was actually the design of the policy, because as a commodity, we did not want the price of oil to go up,” Eric Garcetti, the US ambassador to India under former President Joe Biden, said at the Washington-based Council on Foreign Relations in May 2024 .“They fulfilled that.”

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rthjer, The logic was simple: If no one had bought Russian oil, that would have shrunk the total available oil supply with the same global demand, driving up costs. As Garcetti pointed out, Indian purchases of Russian crude helped avoid that – while allowing the West to reduce its dependence on Russian energ y.

Why is India's oil trade with Russia under scrutiny?

Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Western nations imposed sweeping sanctions on Moscow, particularly targeting its energy exports. US had alleged that India's continued purchase of crude oil from Russia has been 'fuelling' Moscow's war on Ukraine.

In a pointed warning on 4 August, US president Donald Trump threatened to impose“substantial” tariffs on India for“profiting” from fuel exports refined from Russian crude. The Republican also imposed a 25% tariff on Indian defence and energy imports from Moscow-reigniting scrutiny over Washington's approach to Russian oil and the global energy market.

Recently, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent remarked that India is“profiteering” from discounted Russian crude purchase, alleging that New Delhi has been engaging in arbitrage trading during the war in Ukraine.

According to Scott Bessent, Washington views China differently because it was already a major buyer of Russian energy before the war. Beijing's imports from Moscow have only increased from 13 per cent to 16 per cent, which US officials consider less disruptive.

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When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, its share in India's oil imports stood at under 2%. India relied heavily on geographically closer suppliers like Iraq and Saudi Arabia.

However, as European and Western markets began phasing out Russian energy, Moscow started offering steep discounts on its crude.

Within months, Russia became India's top crude oil supplier, displacing West Asian exporters. Today, Russian crude accounts for roughly 35–40% of India's total oil imports by volume.

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Contrary to popular perception, China remains the largest purchaser of Russian crude oil, importing an average of 2.1 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2024, according to industry trackers such as Kpler and Vortexa. In comparison, India ranks second, with imports hovering around 1.5 million bpd.

According to the EU, its total trade with Russia was worth 67.5 billion euros ($77.9 bn) in 2024. India's total trade with Russia in 2024-25 was worth $68.7bn.

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Since the start of the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, the grouping has paid Moscow $105.6bn for gas imports – an amount equivalent to 75 percent of Russia's 2024 military budget – according to the Finnish think tank the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air, which has been tracking Russian energy trade through the war.

In 2024, EU imports of Russian LNG rose 9 percent compared with the year before.

Further, total Russia-US trade in 2024 stood at $5.2bn, according to the US Trade Representative's office – though the numbers are down significantly from 2021, when their trade in goods stood at $36bn.

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