New Delhi: India has made it clear that it will not come under any pressure in the matter of buying oil from Russia. At a weekly press conference on Friday, Foreign Ministry spokesman Arindam Bagchi said in a weekly press conference that the matter of buying oil is related to the country’s energy security. The Foreign Secretary has made it clear that there is no question of any pressure in this regard.
In the press conference, a Russian journalist asked what India’s stand was on imposing price restrictions on oil purchases from Russia. Bagchi said these are technical issues and the petroleum department will take a decision in this regard. He said that it is irrelevant at this time to talk about whether or not we will come under foreign pressure on this issue.
It is noteworthy that the Organization of the US-led G7 countries has proposed that a fixed price limit be set on oil purchases from Russia so that Russia does not profit. This price limit is to be effective from the month of December. China and India are not ready to accept any such price cap.
Since the Ukraine conflict, Russia has been providing crude oil to India at subsidised prices. Indian oil companies are buying oil from Russia in large quantities. Western countries, including America, have directly or indirectly put pressure on India not to increase oil supply from Russia. These countries allege that the proceeds from the sale of oil are being used to continue the war in Ukraine.