New Delhi [India], February 5 (ANI): Amid US President Donald Trump’s claim that India has agreed to halt purchases of Russian oil, the Ministry of External Affairs on Thursday reiterated that ensuring energy security for its 1.4 billion people remains the top priority for the Government of India, especially amid evolving global energy dynamics.
Addressing a press conference in the national capital, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said India’s energy decisions are guided by national interest.
“In so far as India’s energy security or sourcing is confirmed, the government has publicly on several occasions, including me here, stated that ensuring the energy security of 1.4 billion is the supreme priority of the government,” Jaiswal said.
He further outlined the government’s strategy, adding, “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 decisions are taken and will be taken with this in mind.”
Trump made the remarks following the announcement of the India-US trade deal, claiming that New Delhi would stop buying Russian oil and shift toward increased purchases from the United States and Venezuela.
“We spoke about many this including Trade, and ending the War with Russia and Ukraine agreed to stop buying Russian Oil, and to buy much more fr the United States and, potentially, Venezuela. This will help THE WAR in Ukraine, which is taking place right now, with thousands of people dying each and every week!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social post earlier this week.
The trade deal was later confirmed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, though no statement was made regarding stopping Russian oil imports.
Responding to questions on Venezuela, Jaiswal said India remains open to sourcing oil based on commercial considerations.
“India’s stand is clear. We have long-standing partnership with Venezuela. And we remain open to buying oil from Venezuela or other places depending on its commercial viability,” he said.
The bilateral trade agreement between India and the United States was announced on Monday, with tariffs on Indian goods reduced from 50 per cent to 18 per cent. In a press conference on Tuesday, Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal said the final agreement is in its last stages, a view echoed by US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, who stated the deal is “still being papered.” A joint statement outlining the details is expected later.
Meanwhile, Russia also weighed in on the developments. Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Vladimirovna Zakharova said there was no reason to believe India would reconsider its energy cooperation with Russia.
“No reason to believe India has reconsidered its approach to energy cooperation with Russia,” Zakharova said, adding, “The trade in resources is beneficial for both sides and contributes to maintaining stability in the international energy market.”
Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov also said, “We, along with all other international energy experts, are well aware that Russia is not the only supplier of oil and petroleum products to India. India has always purchased these products from other countries. Therefore, we see nothing new here.”
Separately, Goyal reiterated the government’s position, saying, “wish to clarify once again, as 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 with this in mind. I would therefore urge the honourable members to consider these issues in their proper perspective.”
These remarks come as External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar is in the United States for the Critical Minerals Ministerial hosted by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Jaishankar said the two sides reviewed bilateral cooperation during his meetings, with discussions also covering the Indo-Pacific, West Asia and Ukraine.
“We did a fairly detailed review of our bilateral cooperation. It’s natural when foreign ministers meet that you discuss the diplomatic agenda. Also, the calendar – what do we expect each one of us to do this year together, so a lot of our discussion was devoted to that, the bilateral side. But again, foreign ministers meet, and we talk about our business: the Indo-Pacific, what is happening in West Asia, the Middle East, Gaza, and the Ukraine conflict. There was a kind of global review of what was happening in the Western Hemisphere. In a sense, we discussed the world, we discussed our relationship, and it was a very open sort of forthcoming conversation,” he said.
At the Critical Minerals meeting, the EAM underlined India’s support for the FORGE (Forum on Resource, Geostrategic Engagement) initiative. (ANI)