The United States lifted a stringent 25% imposed against India earlier this month and insisted that the country would seek alternatives to Russian oil. The repeated assertions from President Donald Trump are yet to be echoed by New Delhi — with the Ministry of External Affairs reiterating this week that energy sourcing was guided by “national interests”. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov also noted on Wednesday that Trump appeared to be the only world leader declaring such a ‘ban’ on behalf of India.

“You mentioned that Donald Trump announced India’s agreement to no longer purchase Russian oil. I have not heard such a statement from anyone else, including Prime Minister Modi and other Indian leaders,” he told another lawmaker in the state Duma.

The POTUS had held talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi earlier this months and claimed the latter had “agreed to stop buying Russian oil”. The India-US interim trade deal was announced soon after this — with a separate executive order lifting the 25% additional tariff. But the Ministry of External Affairs has remained noncommittal. Top officials asserted days after the trade agreement that energy sourcing would be guided by ‘national interests’.

What does Trump claim?

The tariff suspension comes with several caveats — including warnings against a rekindling of trade links with Moscow. A section of the executive order added that US official would “monitor” India to check whether it “resumed directly or indirectly importing Russian Federation oil” in the future. Trump warned that such a scenario would trigger “additional action” and a possible reimposition of the 25% tariff.

“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 defense cooperation over the next 10 years. After considering the information, I have determined that India has taken significant steps to address the national emergency…” read an excerpt from the Executive Order signed last week.

Has India stopped importing Russian oil?

India has not officially endorsed this claim — insisting repeatedly that its core strategy was to “ensure the energy security” of more than 1.4 billion citizens. The assertion came even as reports suggested that domestic refiners were now avoiding fresh purchases for March–April deliveries. According to a Reuters report, companies such as Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum and Reliance Industries were no longer accepting  Russian crude offers.

Multiple reports have also suggested this month that New Delhi is gearing up for a sharp increase in US oil imports — in line with the Trump claims. And a separate report from Reuters suggested last week that Reliance Industries has just purchased two million barrels of Venezuelan oil. This was its first purchase from the South American nation in nearly a year. The company reportedly bought ‌Venezuelan crude for April delivery at a discount ‌of around $6.5 to $7 ‍per ⁠barrel ​to ICE Brent.

“Our foremost priority is to safeguard the interests of Indian consumers insofar as energy is concerned— to really ensure that they receive adequate energy at the right price and through reliable and secure supplies,” said Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri.