Kathmandu. India is still buying oil from Russia. The Indian government does not prohibit oil companies from doing so.
According to some people, India should meet its energy needs. At the same time, India wants to maintain relations with Russia without angering US President Donald Trump.
The Indian government has not yet taken any decision to stop the import of oil from Russia. According to a Bloomberg report, both public and private oil companies can buy oil from a source of their choice. Buying oil is their own decision.
On Wednesday, President Trump had expressed displeasure with India for buying military equipment and energy from Russia. He also imposed a 25 per cent tariff on India and threatened to impose additional fines for closer ties with Russia.
However, two days later, Trump told reporters, “I have heard that India will no longer buy oil from Russia and it should be called a good step.” ’
India has said that it will buy oil according to the market and price. Last week, oil companies were asked to plan to buy oil from countries other than Russia.
According to Bloomberg, the Indian government has asked state-owned oil companies to tell where and how much oil can be purchased if oil stops coming from Russia. An Indian oil trader said, “This is just a plan so that if oil is not available from Russia, there will be no problem.” ’
The New York Times reported on Saturday that India will continue to buy oil from Russia despite Trump’s threats. For this, it has quoted two Indian officials but has not disclosed the name.
The European Union and the US have criticised Indian oil companies for buying oil from Russia. According to them, India is supporting Russia in the Ukraine war. India has become the world’s largest country to buy oil from Russia by sea. India is buying oil at a cheaper price and has increased its oil imports from Russia from almost zero to one-third.
India will have to buy oil from gulf countries by reducing or closing oil purchases from Russia. Which will be expensive. The Government of India does not want to increase its import bill.
State-owned Indian Oil Corp bought at least five million barrels from the US and two million barrels from Abu Dhabi last week. The company usually does not buy oil so fast and in such a large quantity. – Agency
