Rebuffing Western pressure, India says it will buy oil from ‘wherever is beneficial’
India's energy minister says New Delhi will buy the oil it needs from wherever it is beneficial and not give in to Western pressure.
New Delhi has been under pressure from the West to join in on the US-led sanctions and stop imports of Russian oil.
However, Hardeep Singh Puri said in an interview with CNBC that New Delhi “didn’t allow the geopolitical turbulence or the pandemic or anything else to come in the way of our ability to supply to our consumer”.
India, he said, had no plans to change this approach.
“Today we feel confident that we’ll be able to use our market to source from wherever we have to, from wherever we get beneficial terms… Beneficial terms in this situation is: you have to be sure of your supplies,” Puri explained.
India has increased its imports of Russian oil, taking advantage of steep discounts that Moscow has offered to attract new buyers amid Western sanctions.
India recently became Russia’s top importer of crude, while Russia also outpaced India’s former largest suppliers, Saudi Arabia and Iraq, in terms of delivery volumes.
New Delhi’s oil imports from Russia surged to a five-month high in December, and some 70 percent of January’s cargoes of Russian oil were destined for India, according to Reuters.
Puri reiterated that India will not reject Russian oil. He cautioned that imposing any restrictions in this regard could cause disruptions in the global oil market, pushing energy prices up.
“Can you imagine a situation [where] Iran oil is sanctioned, Russia has problems, Venezuela cannot supply its oil?Then the oil price will not be $200 – it will be $480,” he added.
Other Indian officials have described Russia as a "steady and time-tested partner."
On Monday, CEO of Russia's giant oil company Rosneft said he is willing to supply India's oil demands at “market price”.
Igor Sechin said India is presently purchasing Russian oil at a discount due to the West's sanctions.
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