India on Saturday offered no clear answer on whether it plans to stop buying crude oil from Russia, even after the United States rolled back a punitive 25 per cent tariff on Indian goods that had been imposed over New Delhi’s purchases of Russian petroleum products.
The tariff had been imposed by the US over India’s imports of petroleum products from Russia. US President Donald Trump signed an executive order to remove the additional 25 per cent duty.
Tariff rollback follows US-India trade deal
The move came just days after President Trump announced a trade deal with India. At the time, he said the US would reduce tariffs on Indian goods to 18 per cent from 50 per cent.
Trump linked this tariff cut to India stopping its purchases of Russian oil and lowering trade barriers. In his executive order, Trump said India had already made commitments on energy and defence cooperation.
“Specifically, India has committed to stop directly or indirectly importing Russian Federation oil, has represented that it will purchase United States energy products from the United States, and has recently committed to a framework with the United States to expand defence cooperation over the next 10 years,” Trump said.
The executive order also made it clear that the US could bring back the 25 per cent tariff if India resumes buying Russian oil. It said that if the US Secretary of Commerce finds that India has resumed directly or indirectly importing Russian oil, Trump’s team would recommend “whether and to what extent I should take additional action as to India, including whether I should reimpose the additional ad valorem rate of duty of 25 per cent on imports of articles of India.”
India sticks to energy security stance
Despite Trump’s comments, Indian officials did not give a direct reply on whether the country has stopped buying Russian crude. When asked about the US president’s claims, an official, cited by PTI, pointed to earlier remarks made by External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal.
“Insofar as India’s energy sourcing is concerned, the government has stated publicly on several occasions that ensuring the energy security of 1.4 billion Indians is the supreme priority of the government,” Jaiswal had said on Thursday.
He said India’s policy is based on flexibility and global conditions. “Diversifying our energy sourcing in keeping with objective market conditions and evolving international dynamics is at the core of our strategy to ensure this. All of India’s actions are taken and will be taken with this in mind,” he added.
Russian oil remains a sensitive issue with the US
India’s purchase of Russian oil has been a long-standing point of tension in ties with Washington. Many US officials have claimed that these purchases help fund Russia’s war against Ukraine. India has rejected these claims, saying its energy buying decisions are guided by national interest and market realities.
After Western countries imposed sanctions on Russia following its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, India began buying Russian oil at discounted rates as other buyers stayed away.
In recent weeks, however, India’s purchases of Russian crude oil have dropped. The government, on the other hand, continues to avoid making a clear public statement on whether it plans to stop such imports altogether.