Explained: India can buy oil from Russia and still be friends with USA; Here’s how

New Delhi: The Russia-Ukraine war made us witness a lot of changes within a few months. It made us witness the bitter side of war, the brave souls of Ukrainians, and millions of people and countries standing beside the war-torn country. Meanwhile, India was at the receiving end of the West for its relationship with Russia.

Apart from refusing Moscow’s brutal assault on Ukraine, South Asian countries’ purchases of discounted Russian oil were flying high in the face of sanctions that were aimed at crippling the Kremlin’s finances, stated critics.

While the White House was making its opinion clear calling New Delhi “somewhat shaky” and speaking of its “disappointment.”

However, suddenly, the West’s tune changed. When Biden met Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi this month, they concentrated upon diplomatic backslapping and soundbites about “a deep connection between our people” and “shared values.” Again, on Friday, British PM Boris Johnson’s tour to India talked about trade ties and posing for costumed photos ops, all while glossing over “differences” regarding Russia.

On the contrary, India’s relationship with Russia remains on the same line – buying cheap Russian oil, nearly bought as much in the first months of 2022 as it did in the whole of 2021, reported Reuters. Recently, on April 7, it abstained from a UN vote suspending Russia from the Human Rights Council.

Reportedly, analysts say that India taught the West a masterclass in International diplomacy. 

Why is India important to USA?

Both New Delhi and Washington are uneasy with China’s growing military might, its aggressive territorial claims on land and sea as well as its growing economic influence over its smaller neighbour countries.

In the Biden-Modi meeting, concerns over Chinese aggressions were made clear, when US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin warned China was seeking to “refashion the region and the international system” and said the US and India had “identified new opportunities to extend the operational reach of our militaries.”

According to Manoj Kewalramani, a fellow of China studies at the Takshashila Institution in India, even though there is a difference in perspective regarding the Ukraine issue, the two countries had a deep “understanding of each other’s positions.”

A complicated relationship

The US witnessed that India’s relationship with Russia changed historically even though the West took a different course. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken notified that India’s relationship with Russia had “developed over decades, at a time when the United States was not able to be a partner to India.”

India began to lean towards USSR in the 1970s when the US started providing military and financial assistance to its neighbour, Pakistan. 

India was then helped by Russia, who provided the country with arms. To this day, India heavily depends on Russia for military equipment.

Even in 2018, India struck a $5 billion weapon deal with Russia for an air defence missile system.

Thus, India’s dependence on Russian arms limits its ability to denounce Moscow’s actions in Ukraine. Even when Putin visited India last December, Modi called him a “dear friend.”

“Wooed by all sides”

Moscow remains keen on selling India discounted oil. The last month’s visit of Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov to the Delhi meeting his counterparts praised India for not looking at the Ukraine war “in a one-sided way.”

Besides, the West’s ties with India have been growing since Modi’s election in 2014. Annual India-US trade is more than $110 billion, compared to India’s trade with Russia, which amounts to about $8 billion. In recent years, India has also become a major customer of US military equipment.

Thus Pant concludes by saying, “India actually comes out very strong from this crisis. And that’s quite a feat actually.”