New Delhi: India Thursday maintained that any oil purchases from Russia will continue if the global market dynamics support it, while remaining open to exploring commercial opportunities with Venezuela. The statement comes after US President Donald J. Trump Monday asserted that New Delhi has promised to buy no oil from Moscow.
“Insofar as India’s energy sourcing is concerned, the government has stated publicly on several occasions that ensuring the energy security of 1.4 billion Indians is the supreme priority of the government. Diversifying our energy sourcing in keeping with objective market conditions and evolving international dynamics is at the core of our strategy to ensure this. All of India’s actions are taken and will be taken with this in mind,” Randhir Jaiswal, the official spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs, said at a regular press briefing.
US President Trump and his administration have repeatedly claimed in the past 72 hours that India agreed to cut all oil purchases from Russia after striking a trade deal with Washington. The deal was announced by Trump following a call with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi late Monday evening.
The US President further added in his statement Monday that India will look to purchase oil from Venezuela, the South American country whose President was captured by the US last month in an early morning raid on Caracas.
“Venezuela has been a long-standing partner of India in the energy sector, encompassing trade and investments. The country was among India’s major sources of crude oil until FY 2019–20, which were discontinued following sanctions. Imports from Venezuela resumed in FY 2023–24, before being halted again due to the re-imposition of sanctions,” said Jaiswal.
He added: “Indian PSUs have had a partnership with Venezuela’s National Oil Company, PdVSA and have been maintaining a presence in Venezuela since 2008. Consistent with India’s approach to energy security, India remains open to exploring the commercial merits of any new crude supply options, including from Venezuela.”
The deal announced by Trump will see the tariffs imposed by his administration on India drop to 18 percent from the current rate of 50 percent. Part of the high tariffs — 25 percent— was imposed by the US as a penalty duty due to India’s large Russian oil purchases.
In the 2024-2025 financial year, India purchased $56 billion worth of crude oil from Moscow, as the price cap imposed by the G7 ensured the Russian prices were lower than the prevailing market price. The price cap was imposed, keeping India’s needs in mind, the previous US administration has publicly stated.
However, Trump has criticised India’s oil purchases, with several advisers, including Peter Navarro, blaming New Delhi for helping Russia sustain its war in Ukraine through the large purchases of energy from Moscow. India has repeatedly denied the charge, maintaining that market dynamics guide its oil purchases.
India has previously invested in Venezuela’s oil sector, but the trade was constrained because Venezuelan crude was heavily sanctioned by the US from 2019 as Trump attempted to remove President Nicolas Maduro. Maduro was eventually captured in January 2026 by the US and brought back to New York City to face judicial charges.
India has continued purchases of Russian oil this year, but there has been a significant decrease in volume following the imposition of sanctions by the US on Rosneft and Lukoil, two of Moscow’s largest oil producers.
(Edited by Varnika Dhawan)
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