Face to Trump's pressure, "Russia oil, India will buy as usual"

Over these two days, US President Trump has "torn up his face" with India. According to CCTV News, on July 30 local time, US President Trump announced that starting August 1, he would impose a 25% tariff on Indian products. At the same time, Trump made some unkind remarks on social media, accusing India and pressuring it to stop purchasing Russian weapons and energy.

On August 1 local time, Trump said that he heard India would no longer purchase oil from Russia, and said he would "wait and see".

However, two anonymous senior Indian officials said that despite Trump's threats of punishment, India will continue to purchase oil from Russia. One informed official said: "These are long-term oil contracts, not something that can be stopped overnight."

According to reports, after recent US-India negotiations hit a deadlock, Trump has been continuously pressuring India.

At the same time as announcing a 25% tariff on India, Trump criticized India's high tariffs as "severe and annoying," and threatened to punish it for purchasing Russian energy and weapons. He posted on social media: "I don't care what India does with Russia," and called the two countries "dead economies." He accused the other side of always purchasing energy and weapons from Russia and used this as a reason to threaten India with so-called "fines."

On the same day, Trump told reporters that he had heard India would no longer purchase oil from Russia. He said: "This is what I heard. I don't know if it's correct. It's a good step. We'll wait and see."

But later that evening, two informed Indian officials revealed that the government's policy had not changed. One official said that the government "has not instructed oil companies to reduce imports from Russia."

Meanwhile, sources told Indian media that India's energy supply decisions depend on price, crude quality, inventory, logistics, and other economic factors, so they will continue to purchase Russian oil. The source mentioned that Russia is the world's second-largest crude oil producer, with a daily output of about 9.5 million barrels, accounting for nearly 10% of global demand; it is also the world's second-largest crude oil exporter, with a daily export of about 4.5 million barrels of crude oil and about 2.3 million barrels of refined products.

"In this challenging environment, as the world's third-largest energy consumer, India's crude oil import dependence is as high as 85%," the source pointed out. "Therefore, India has strategically adjusted its procurement methods to ensure access to reasonably priced energy while fully complying with international norms."

On August 1, Randeep Suri, spokesperson for the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated at a regular press conference: "Regarding our energy procurement needs... we will consider the resources available in the market, the conditions provided, and the global situation or environment at the time." He added that India maintains a "stable and tested partnership" with Russia, and New Delhi's relations with all countries are based on its own values, and should not be viewed from the perspective of a third country.

Suri refused to directly respond to Trump's threats. But he implied that India's policy towards Russia would not change.

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1839352076238848/

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