Indian companies will continue to buy oil from anywhere where they get the “best trade”, the Indian envoy to Russia Vinay Kumar said and claims that the new Delhi will continue to take measures that protect its “national interest”, PTI reported.
In an interview with the Russian State Intelligence Agency TASS published on Sunday, Kumar said that the priority of the new Delhi is to ensure energy security of 1.4 billion people in the country.
His remarks come in the middle of American criticism of Indian purchase of discounted Russian oil, which is the criticism that India strongly refused, PTI reported.
He stressed that the trade is on “commercial basis”, Kumar said: “Indian companies will continue to buy from anywhere where they get into the best solution. That’s what the current situation is.”
“… We have clearly stated that our goal is energy safety of 1.4 billion people in India and Indian cooperation with Russia, from several other countries, has helped to bring stability on the oil market, the global oil market,” the report said.
His comments come against the background of Donald Trump, which doubled the tariffs to Indian goods to an incredible 50 percent, including 25 % of the additional obligation to buy Russian oil in India.
The US claimed that Indian purchases of Russian oil funds Moscow’s war in Ukraine, which is a fee strongly rejected by India.
Kumar called Washington’s decision “unfair, disproportionate and unjustified” and stated that the Indian government “will continue to take measures that will protect the country’s national interest”.
India claims that its energy contracts, including Russia, are led by the national interest and dynamics of the market.
Kumar said that trade between India and Russia is based on mutual interests and market factors and added that it is carried out with a “overall goal to ensure energy security of 1.4 billion Indian people”.
“There are other countries, including the US itself and in Europe trading in Russia,” he said.
On Saturday, the Minister of external Affairs Jaishankar, who responded to the issue of American criticism of India on oil, said, “It is fun to have people who work for the US Pro-Business administration who accuse other people of business.”
“That’s really curious. If you have a problem buying oil or refined products from India, don’t buy it. No one forces you to buy. But Europe will buy, America will buy, so you do not like it, do not buy it,” he said.
(Tagstotranslate) Indian Society (T) Energy Security (T) Discounted Russian Oil (T) National Interest (T) Criticism of the US
