India calls out Western duplicity over import of oil from Russia

Among the top buyers of Russian oil and gas are Germany, Italy, France, and the Netherlands. India’s dependence on imported energy should not be politicised, says source

India on Friday called out Western duplicity after the U.S. urged the country to stop buying Russian oil and gas.

An informed source said India’s energy sector was dependent on large imports and that the country’s dependence on imported energy should not be “politicised.”

“Countries with oil self-sufficiency or those importing themselves from Russia cannot credibly advocate restrictive trading,” said the source, indirectly responding to the growing Western pressure to stop import of oil and gas from Russia.

The Hindu had earlier reported that India’s energy majors had moved ahead with purchasing oil and gas from Russia being supplied at a “discount.”

The U.S. has increased diplomatic pressure on India to stop buying Russian energy.

White House spokesperson Jen Psaki equated purchasing energy from Russia with “support for the Russian leadership” and said, “Also think about where you want to stand when history books are written at this moment in time.”

The Indian side argued that a large number of Western and European countries, in particular, were purchasing energy from Russia even though Moscow was carrying out an aggressive military operation across Ukraine.