As Washington weighs a bill targeting countries that buy Russian crude, India responds cautiously, reiterating its energy sourcing approach while the proposed legislation gathers support in the US Senate.
India on Friday said it was closely following a proposed US legislation that could impose tariffs of up to 100 per cent on countries including India and China for purchasing Russian crude oil, as the bill reportedly gains support from around 60 US Senators.
“We are closely following these developments, and we are aware of the proposed legislation,” External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said at his regular media briefing.
“As far as buying oil is concerned, we buy oil from various countries in the world. It is based on our approach towards energy sourcing,” he said in response to a question about the proposed bill.
The legislation was conceived by Democrat Senator Richard Blumenthal and late Republican Senator Lindsey Graham. It seeks to impose sweeping sanctions on Russia’s political leadership, financial institutions and energy sector, with the stated aim of cutting off revenues used by Russian President Vladimir Putin to finance the war against Ukraine.
‘100% TARIFFS’ ON MAJOR RUSSIAN OIL BUYERS
Blumenthal said on Tuesday that the proposed legislation was aimed at imposing 100 per cent tariffs on five major purchasers of Russian oil — China, India, Slovakia, Hungary and Azerbaijan.
The bill would target countries continuing to purchase Russian crude, potentially exposing them to steep additional trade penalties in an effort to increase pressure on Moscow.
