Russia-Ukraine War: Who Is Buying Russian Oil? | 'Hot Mic' with Nidhi Razdan

Russia Ukraine War: As the debate rages over oil and whether it amounts to endorsing Russian actions in Ukraine, the fact is that several western countries are still buying Russian oil.

Hi, This is Hot Mic and I'm Nidhi Razdan.

It's been well over 40 days since Russia's invasion of Ukraine. As the world continues to express outrage, India has found itself at the epicenter of hectic diplomatic activity and increased pressure from the West, especially on the issue of Russian oil imports. The US has openly expressed unhappiness with India's stand, with the Deputy NSA Daleep Singh warning of consequences for any country, including India, that conducts local currency transactions through Russia's central bank or constructs a payment mechanism that circumvents US sanctions against Russia. Now, the language that the US Deputy NSA used was uncharacteristically undiplomatic but it did not move India. 

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman bluntly said, "India had started buying cheaper Russian oil and will continue to do so. I would put my country's national interest and energy security first," she said. "If there is fuel available at a discount, why shouldn't I buy it?" Russia has offered crude oil to India at sharply discounted rates of $35 a barrel. Now, according to data compiled by Reuters, India has booked at least 16 million barrels of Russian oil since the invasion of Ukraine on the 24th of February. And that's close to the level of its overall imports of 2021. 80% of India's oil needs are imported, only about one to two percent is actually from Russia.