Although US President Donald Trump has recently threatened to hike tariffs substantially on Indian products over its continued Russian oil import, earlier declarations of senior American officials attest to a completely different attitude — one that actually boosted India's energy transactions with Moscow for the sake of ensuring global market stability.
Back in November 2022, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen had clearly stated that Washington had no issue with India buying Russian oil, even at prices exceeding the G7-imposed cap — as long as Western insurance, finance, and shipping services bound by the cap were avoided.
“The United States is happy for India to continue buying as much Russian oil as it wants, including at prices above a G7-imposed price cap mechanism,” Yellen said.
Likewise, back in March 2024, Amos Hochstein, who was energy and global infrastructure adviser to former President Joe Biden at that time, admitted it wasn't the aim to take Russian oil off the world supply. "At the end of the day, my goal is not to take it off the market, I'm not looking to take these tankers, take the crude, the product, off the market," said Hochstein.
In February 2024, US Assistant Secretary of State Geoffrey Pyatt recognized India's role in ensuring global energy stability, saying, "India has played an important role in work to stabilise global energy markets with Russian crude purchases."
US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti took it one step further in May 2024, coming out in the open and saying India's ongoing oil imports were in sync with Washington's greater energy interests. "The US let the purchase go through so that the prices wouldn't rise worldwide," Garcetti said, adding, "India made good on that.
These comments are a stark contrast to President Trump's latest accusations and the warning of heavy tariffs over India's oil business with Russia — which he alleges has indirectly financed the war in Ukraine.
In a reaction to the increasing rhetoric, the Indian government issued a scathing statement rejecting the criticism as "unjustified" and "unreasonable." It reasserted that India, as any sovereign economy, gives utmost importance to its energy security and strategic independence.
"India will do everything required to protect its national interests and economic security," the official statement said.
Although India has come under pressure from both the United States and the European Union regarding its continued imports from Russia since the beginning of the Ukraine conflict, New Delhi has always maintained that its actions were based on economic compulsion, and not political alignment.
While so, the US itself continues to procure crucial commodities from Russia — such as uranium hexafluoride for its nuclear industry, palladium for electric vehicles, and fertilisers and chemicals — undermining the consistency of its allegations.
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