NEW DELHI: The ministry of external affairs on Saturday reiterated it stance on the import of Russian oil and said that India’s energy security remains the government’s top priority.In a statement, MEA said that diversifying India’s energy sourcing lies at the heart of our strategy.
“Insofar as India’s energy sourcing is concerned, the government has stated publicly on several occasions that ensuring the energy security of 1.4 billion Indians is the supreme priority of the government,” the ministry said.“Diversifying our energy sourcing in keeping with objective market conditions and evolving international dynamics is at the core of our strategy to ensure this. All of India’s actions are taken and will be taken with this in mind,” it added.This comes after New Delhi and Washington issued a joint statement outlining the details of the recently announced trade pact, under which tariffs on Indian products entering US will drop from 50% to 18%. The development follows months of negotiations that started back in February 2025.In a press briefing later in the day, Union minister Piyush Goyal assured that the India-US trade deal framework will not harm Indian farmers, MSMEs, artisans, or craftsmen, and said their interests remain fully protected.“I can say with absolute certainty that the farmers, MSMEs, artisans, and craftsmen of India will not suffer any kind of loss,” Goyal saidWhen asked whether India will stop purchasing Russian oil, as mentioned in a White House statement announcing the elimination of the additional tariffs imposed on India for the purchase, Piyush Goyal had said, “MEA will give information about it.”After announcing the interim framework between the United States and India trade agreement, the White House had said, “India has committed to stop directly or indirectly importing Russian Federation oil, has represented that it will purchase United States energy products from the United States, and has recently committed to a framework with the United States to expand defense cooperation over the next 10 years.“
