India defies Trump and Europe on Russian oil imports, points out their duplicity

Hours after US President Donald Trump warned of increasing tariffs on India for purchasing Russian oil during the Ukraine conflict, India on Monday retaliated against Washington and the European Union, challenging their hypocrisy regarding crude imports.
Rejecting the criticism from the US and the EU regarding its oil imports from Russia, India deemed their focus as “unjustified and unreasonable” considering the ongoing and significant Western trade with Moscow. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), addressing US President Donald Trump’s warning of significantly increasing tariffs on India for trading in Russian oil, stated that India’s decision to acquire discounted Russian oil came after the onset of the Ukraine conflict, which caused traditional energy suppliers to redirect their exports to Europe

The MEA emphasised that India’s energy imports from Russia are essential to ensuring affordable and predictable fuel prices for Indian consumers.

“India’s imports are meant to ensure predictable and affordable energy costs to the Indian consumer. They are a necessity compelled by global market situation. However, it is revealing that the very nations criticising India are themselves indulging in trade with Russia. Unlike our case, such trade is not even a vital national compulsion,” the ministry said in a statement.

Further highlighting the disparity, the ministry cited bilateral trade between the European Union and Russia in 2024, which were “significantly more than India’s total trade with Russia that year or subsequently.”

“Where the United States is concerned, it continues to import from Russia uranium hexafluoride for its nuclear industry, palladium for its EV industry, fertilisers as well as chemicals,” the statement said.

Previously, Trump warned India of significantly increasing tariffs on its purchases of ‘huge quantities’ of oil from Russia during the conflict with Ukraine. “…They disregard the number of lives lost in Ukraine due to the Russian War Machine. As a result, I will significantly increase the Tariff that India pays to the USA,” he stated on Truth Social.

The MEA, in a firm reply, stated that India will operate based on its national interest and economic security, noting that efforts to isolate India overlook the larger framework of global trade dynamics.New Delhi has consistently asserted that its foreign policy choices, including energy alliances, are autonomous and driven by practical factors, especially given the unpredictable global markets