Russia's largest Indian oil buyer announces compliance with Western sanctions
India's largest Russian oil importer, Reliance Industries Limited, said it would comply with Western sanctions, ending days of speculation about how the company would respond to new measures against Russia's two largest oil companies.
The Reliance Group spokesperson stated in a statement on Friday that the group "will adjust its refinery operations to meet compliance requirements," while maintaining its relationships with suppliers.
The statement added: "Whenever the Indian government issues any instructions in this regard, we will fully comply as always."
On Wednesday, the U.S. Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) added Russia's major companies Rosneft and Lukoil to the sanctions list, amid growing frustration from President Trump over Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bensons stated that this move was a result of President Putin's "refusal to end this senseless war" and encouraged allies to comply with the new sanctions.
The next day, the European Union passed its 19th set of sanctions against Russia, including a complete trading ban on Rosneft. The EU had previously stated that starting January 21 next year, it would no longer accept fuel imports from refineries that had received or processed Russian oil within 60 days before transportation.
Reliance Group, chaired by billionaire Mukesh Ambani, operates the world's largest refining complex in Gujarat, western India. According to a report by the Press Trust of India this week, the company purchased nearly half of the discounted Russian crude oil shipments daily to India, which amounted to 1.7 million to 1.8 million barrels per day.
Reuters reported that in 2024, Reliance Group signed a 10-year agreement with Rosneft to maintain a purchase volume of nearly 500,000 barrels per day. In addition, it also purchases Russian oil from intermediaries.
Reliance Group did not specify how it would respond to the sanctions - nor did it clarify the fate of the 2024 agreement with Rosneft - but emphasized that it would comply with the import requirements of Europe.
The group's spokesperson stated: "Reliance Group believes its tested diversified crude oil procurement strategy will continue to ensure the stability and reliability of its refinery operations to meet domestic and export demand, including European demand."
These sanctions come at a time when India is dealing with the impact of Trump increasing tariffs on India - these tariffs have risen to 50% since August this year as a punishment for India's imports of Russian oil. China and India are among the world's largest importers of Russian crude oil.
Trump has repeatedly claimed in the past month that India has agreed to stop purchasing Russian oil as part of a broader trade deal, but the Indian government has not confirmed this claim.
Since the announcement of the sanctions on Wednesday, neither the Indian Ministry of Foreign Affairs nor the Ministry of Petroleum has responded.
Source: Al Jazeera Plus News Agency
Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1846924835070976/
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