New Delhi: External affairs minister S Jaishankar said at a joint press briefing with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Moscow on Thursday that India was "perplexed" at the US criticism of its energy trade with Russia, pointing out that India was not the largest buyer of either oil or gas from the country while emphasising that the defence and military-technical cooperation between the two remained robust via JVs and technology transfer.
"We are not the biggest purchasers of Russian oil - that is China. We are not the biggest purchasers of LNG - that is the European Union. We are not the country which has the biggest trade surge with Russia after 2022 - I think there are some countries to the south," Jaishankar said.
He pointed out that the US itself had urged India to do "everything possible" to stabilise the world energy market, including by buying oil from Russia. "We also buy oil from the US, and that amount has increased. So, honestly, we are very perplexed at the logic of the argument," he said. The remarks come in the backdrop of the US imposing a 25% tariff on India and an extra 25% as penalty for buying Russian oil that will take effect from August 27.
Lavrov Talks about Jt projects
Lavrov said at the presser, "We have good results in cooperation in the hydrocarbon sector, in the supply of Russian oil to the Indian market. And we have a mutual interest in implementing joint projects for the extraction of energy resources, including in the Russian Federation, in the Far East and on the Arctic shelf."
Jaishankar on balanced trade
The duo discussed ways to increase India's exports to Russia for a balanced trade partnership. This requires swiftly addressing non-tariff barriers and regulatory impediments. "Enhancing Indian exports to Russia in sectors like pharmaceuticals, agriculture and textiles will certainly help to correct the current imbalance," Jaishankar said. "Steps to ensure long-term supply of fertilisers were also taken up. Indian skilled workers, especially in IT, construction and engineering, can address the labour needs in Russia and deepen collaboration."
"We are not the biggest purchasers of Russian oil - that is China. We are not the biggest purchasers of LNG - that is the European Union. We are not the country which has the biggest trade surge with Russia after 2022 - I think there are some countries to the south," Jaishankar said.
He pointed out that the US itself had urged India to do "everything possible" to stabilise the world energy market, including by buying oil from Russia. "We also buy oil from the US, and that amount has increased. So, honestly, we are very perplexed at the logic of the argument," he said. The remarks come in the backdrop of the US imposing a 25% tariff on India and an extra 25% as penalty for buying Russian oil that will take effect from August 27.
Lavrov Talks about Jt projects
Lavrov said at the presser, "We have good results in cooperation in the hydrocarbon sector, in the supply of Russian oil to the Indian market. And we have a mutual interest in implementing joint projects for the extraction of energy resources, including in the Russian Federation, in the Far East and on the Arctic shelf."
Jaishankar on balanced trade
The duo discussed ways to increase India's exports to Russia for a balanced trade partnership. This requires swiftly addressing non-tariff barriers and regulatory impediments. "Enhancing Indian exports to Russia in sectors like pharmaceuticals, agriculture and textiles will certainly help to correct the current imbalance," Jaishankar said. "Steps to ensure long-term supply of fertilisers were also taken up. Indian skilled workers, especially in IT, construction and engineering, can address the labour needs in Russia and deepen collaboration."
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