Prime Minister Narendra Modi with the Russian President Vladimir Putin
| Photograph Credit score: PTI
India is free to purchase oil from any nation, and there may be nothing new about its determination to diversify its crude suppliers, the Kremlin stated on Wednesday (February 4, 2026).
Additionally Learn | India dedicated to now not buying Russian oil, $500 billion of investments into U.S.: White Home
“We, together with all different worldwide vitality specialists, are effectively conscious that Russia is just not the one provider of oil and petroleum merchandise to India. India has at all times bought these merchandise from different nations. Due to this fact, we see nothing new right here,” Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov stated whereas responding to a query.
He was requested about U.S. President Donald Trump’s declare that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had agreed to cease shopping for Russian oil and swap to buying crude from the USA and, probably, from Venezuela.
A day earlier, Mr. Peskov stated that Russia has not obtained any statements from India concerning the cessation of Russian oil purchases.
International Ministry Spokesperson Maria Zakharova on Wednesday (February 4) stated that the hydrocarbons commerce is helpful for each India and Russia.
“We stay satisfied that India’s buy of Russian hydrocarbons is helpful to each nations and contributes to sustaining stability within the worldwide vitality market. We’re able to proceed shut cooperation on this space with our companions in India,” Ms. Zakharova stated at a press briefing.
Personal Kommersant FM enterprise radio famous that, not like President Trump, PM Modi didn’t point out any settlement on stopping Russian oil imports.
Igor Yushkov, a number one skilled on the Nationwide Power Safety Fund, stated that Indian refiners can not absolutely cease the import of Russian crude.
“The American shale oil they export is mild grades, much like fuel condensate. Russia, then again, provides comparatively heavy, sulfur-rich Urals. This implies India might want to mix U.S. crude with different grades, which incurs extra prices, that means a easy substitution will not be potential,” he stated.
“Russia usually exports 1.5 million to 2 million barrels per day to the nation. America will not have the ability to cowl that quantity. So, one will get the sense that Trump is solely making an attempt to indicate that he gained these commerce negotiations and the deal was concluded totally in keeping with U.S. calls for,” he stated.
Final time, when Russia switched to the Indian market from European and American markets in 2022, it lower manufacturing by 1 million barrels per day. This led to costs rising to $120 per barrel, and the U.S. set an all-time excessive for gasoline and diesel costs, Mr. Yushkov recalled.
Mr. Trump final 12 months imposed 50% tariffs on India, among the many highest on the earth, together with 25% levies for its purchases of Russian vitality.
India buys about 88% of its crude oil, which is transformed into fuels like petrol and diesel, from abroad.
Russian oil made up hardly 0.2% of all crude oil that India imported until 2021. India, the world’s third-largest oil importer, grew to become the most important purchaser of discounted Russian crude after Western nations shunned Moscow following its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.
India’s import of Russian crude oil dropped to round 1.1 million barrels per day within the first three weeks of January, from a mean of 1.21 million bpd within the earlier month and over 2 million bpd imports in mid-2025, based on knowledge from real-time analytics firm Kpler.
Printed – February 05, 2026 11:09 am IST
