External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday expressed surprise at the US decision to impose additional tariffs on Indian goods over Russian oil purchases, saying India is not the largest buyer of Russian energy.
Speaking at a joint press conference with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Moscow, Jaishankar stressed that China and the European Union, not India, top the list of Russian energy importers.
“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 seen the biggest trade surge with Russia after 2022. In fact, the US itself encouraged us to stabilise the global energy market, including buying oil from Russia. Incidentally, we also buy oil from the US, and that amount has increased. So honestly, we are very perplexed at the logic behind these tariffs,” he said.
US President Donald Trump announced a 25 per cent tariff on Indian goods in July, followed by another 25 per cent hike, raising the total tariff to 50 per cent. He cited India’s continued imports of Russian oil as the reason, despite earlier expectations of an interim trade deal between the two nations.
Energy & Trade Balance
Jaishankar underscored that sustaining energy cooperation with Russia is vital through both trade and investments. He also highlighted the need to reduce the trade imbalance by enhancing Indian exports to Russia in sectors like agriculture, pharmaceuticals, and textiles, and by addressing non-tariff barriers.
Strategic & Regional Issues
The two ministers also discussed global developments. “On regional issues, we discussed Ukraine, West Asia, the Middle East, and Afghanistan. India’s approach continues to emphasise dialogue and diplomacy as essential to resolving differences,” Jaishankar said.
On defence, he noted that India-Russia military cooperation remains strong, with Moscow supporting India’s ‘Make in India’ goals, including joint production and technology transfer.
Issue of Indians in Russian Army
Jaishankar also raised the issue of Indians serving in the Russian Army. “While many have been released, there are still some pending cases, with some missing persons. We hope the Russian side will resolve this expeditiously,” he said.
Jaishankar is currently on a three-day visit to Russia, where he co-chaired the 26th Session of the India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technological and Cultural Cooperation (IRIGC-TEC) and addressed the India-Russia Business Forum in Moscow.
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