India has been purchasing oil from Russia since 2022 because it was cheap and available. This was stated by the country's Minister of External Affairs, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, UNN reports with reference to Bloomberg.
Details
According to him, India did so at the request of the US to keep global oil prices low.
At that time, the US specifically asked India to buy Russian oil to stabilize the oil market. I buy oil based on cost and availability,
The publication notes that after the US imposed sanctions on Russia in 2022 for its invasion of Ukraine and capped the price of its oil, India became a major buyer.
At that time, a significant portion of the oil available on the market came from Russia because Europeans were buying up Middle Eastern oil, which was our traditional supplier. Circumstances pushed us in a certain direction,
He also criticized the periodic US sanctions on Russian oil.
"Let's not pretend that there is some great principle involved here. I don't think it's appropriate to make a display of morality out of this issue," Jaishankar added.
Recall
The Indian Register of Shipping (IRClass), one of the world's leading ship safety certification bodies, has removed 235 vessels, mostly oil tankers, from its register since 2023 due to their involvement in violating international sanctions.
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