India ready to abandon Russian oil: Expert names condition
Photo: India is ready to give up Russian oil on one condition (Getty Images)
India is ready to abandon Russian oil. This is possible if someone else offers New Delhi lower prices, according to the RBC article on the topic.
As Swasti Rao, Associate fellow at the Center for Europe and Eurasia at the Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, explains, if someone else offers India lower prices for purchasing, the country will refuse Russian oil.
"One should know that India has never bought Russian oil before the war in Ukraine began. We got our oil from the Gulf countries. When the war started and when there were sanctions put on Russia, Russia wanted to reach out to other economies, and it gave us a lot of discounts," said Rao.
India and Russia's military cooperation
As for Russian weapons, after the start of the full-scale invasion, India did not sign any new contracts with Russia. Again, there are very pragmatic reasons for this.
On the one hand, Russia is redirecting all its weapons to the frontlines against Ukraine, causing previously signed contracts to collapse. According to a March report by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, India imported 76% of its weapons from Russia in 2009. By 2023, Russia's share had dropped to just 36%.
On the other hand, there are technological concerns. Russian weapons often contain foreign-made components, but their supply from Europe is gradually being restricted, with Chinese components taking their place. This raises concerns in India about potential vulnerabilities in Chinese parts, which pose security risks given the strained relations between New Delhi and Beijing.
War in Ukraine and India
India maintains its ties with Russia amidst the war in Ukraine. New Delhi hopes that this step will prevent a deepening of the China-Russia alliance.
At the same time, at least 91 Indian citizens have participated in the war in Ukraine. Most of these people come from low-income families, so when Russian agents offered them jobs with considerable earnings, they agreed.
Furthermore, as Reuters reported in September, shells sold by Indian arms manufacturers were redirected by European buyers to Ukraine. Despite protests from Moscow, New Delhi has not interfered in stopping this trade.
