Moscow has ‘special mechanism’ to continue oil supplies to India amid US tariffs: Russian official

• Russian markets open to Indian goods amid US tariffs, says Russian deputy envoy in New Delhi-
• Trump administration slaps 50% tariffs on New Delhi over oil imports from Russian amid war with Ukraine

ANKARA

Russia has a “very special mechanism” to maintain crude oil supplies to India despite punishing US tariffs, a senior Russian diplomat posted in New Delhi said Wednesday.

In a news conference, Roman Babushkin, deputy chief of the Russian Embassy in India, said: “If Indian goods are facing difficulties entering the US market, the Russian market is welcoming Indian exports to the most extent possible.”

Moscow’s offer comes as India’s imports of Russian crude oil, amid war in Ukraine, have strained its strategic ties with the US, which has imposed 50% tariffs.

"There is (a) mechanism (of) how to supply crude oil... it's really a very special mechanism," said Evgeny Griva, a trade official at the embassy.

India has called the Trump administration’s measures “unfair and unjust.”

Responding to questions, the Russian diplomat said: “Any kind of unilateral action leads to disruptions in supply chains, imbalance in pricing policies and destabilization of global markets, endangering the energy security of developing countries.”

“This pressure is just unjustified,” Babushkin said.

Bilateral trade between India and Russia hit a record $68.7 billion last year, with New Delhi importing some 88 million tons of Russian oil during the same period.

“We know about the challenging circumstances for India… We have earned the trust,” he said, referring to Moscow’s strategic ties with New Delhi.

According to Peter Navarro, a counsellor for trade and manufacturing at the White House, India’s purchases of Russia’s crude oil had climbed to over 30% of its total imports, from a mere 1%, since the Ukraine war began in February 2022.