Trump Claims India to Stop Russian Oil Imports
Shortly after US President Donald Trump said India is putting a stop to Russian oil imports, government sources on Saturday said energy purchases were driven by market forces and national interests and that they had no reports of Indian oil firms halting Russian imports.
Government Response to Trump’s Claim
Trump claimed he had heard that India is no longer going to buy oil from Russia, which he hailed as a ‘good step,’ but added that he wasn’t sure about the development.
“Well, I understand India is no longer going to be buying oil from Russia. That’s what I heard. I don’t know if that’s right or not, but that’s a good step. We’ll see what happens,” Trump told reporters Friday.
Impact on Indian Oil Imports
Indian imports of oil from Russia first came into the spotlight after a recent executive order by the White House, which imposed a 25% tariff on India on July 31 ahead of the Aug. 1 tariff deadline. However, Trump also mentioned that India will pay a “penalty” for its purchases of Russian military equipment and energy.
As the penalties loom, the country’s top refiner Indian Oil Corp. bought at least five million barrels of US crude, on top of 2 million barrels of supplies from Abu Dhabi, Bloomberg News reported. State-owned processors were told to come up with plans for buying non-Russian crude earlier this week.
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