Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar has said nobody is “forced” to buy oil products from his country, after repeated US allegations that New Delhi is “profiteering” from Russian crude.
Speaking at an event organized by the Economic Times in New Delhi, Jaishankar also rejected allegations that India’s purchases of Russian oil indirectly fuel the Ukraine conflict.
”If you have a problem buying oil or refined products from India, don’t buy it,” he said on Saturday. “Nobody forces you to buy it. Europe buys, America buys, so you don’t like it, don’t buy it.”
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Last week, US President Donald Trump’s trade adviser, Peter Navarro, became the latest American official to criticize Indian purchases of Russian crude, claiming that they were entirely unnecessary. “It’s a refining profit-sharing scheme.” Navarro alleged. “It’s a laundromat for the Kremlin.”
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had earlier accused India of “profiteering” by buying Russian crude and reselling it.
Jaishankar said Russian oil imports served both Indian and global interests, helping to stabilize oil prices.
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Earlier this month, Trump announced an additional 25% tariff on imports from India over New Delhi’s continued purchases of Russian crude. The new tariffs, which are due to take effect on August 27, come in addition to the 25% slapped on New Delhi after India and the US could not reach a trade deal.
On Saturday, Jaishankar said India-US trade negotiations are ongoing and that there is no permanent fallout, even though there are some “red lines” such as the interests of Indian farmers.
A US delegation was scheduled to visit the South Asian country for the next round of negotiations on August 25, but last week called off the visit.
“Negotiations are still going on in the sense that nobody said the negotiations are off,” Jaishankar said. “People do talk to each other.”