New Delhi: India received unexpected backing from Finland over its continued imports of Russian crude oil, with Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen defending New Delhi’s energy purchases and saying they were made within the framework of the Western-imposed price cap on Russian oil.
Speaking at the Kultaranta Talks in Finland, alongside External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and UAE Assistant Foreign Minister Lana Nusseibeh, Valtonen said the objective of the oil price cap introduced after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine was never to stop countries from buying Russian crude altogether.
“In India’s defence, it has bought oil under the price cap. That was the intention,” Valtonen said.
She explained that the sanctions mechanism was designed to ensure the global oil market remained stable while limiting Moscow’s revenues.
“When we introduced the oil price cap, we did not prohibit the world from buying Russian oil. The entire idea was not to disrupt the oil market but to make sure oil continued to be supplied while Russia did not make massive margins from it,” she added.
Valtonen’s remarks came as Jaishankar strongly defended India’s energy policy and rejected criticism over the country’s continued reliance on Russian oil.
“I buy oil based on cost and availability,” Jaishankar said, explaining that global energy markets underwent a major shift after sanctions were imposed on Russia in 2022.
“At that point of time, much of the oil available in the market was from Russia because Europeans were buying up the Middle East oil, which was our traditional supplier. Circumstances pushed us in a certain direction,” he said.
Jaishankar also claimed that the United States had encouraged India to continue buying Russian oil during the early stages of the Ukraine conflict to help stabilise global energy markets.
“At that time, the US specifically asked India to buy Russian oil to stabilise the oil market. Let’s not pretend some great principle is involved here,” he said.
The External Affairs Minister also delivered a sharp response to criticism from some European countries over India’s foreign policy choices.
“European countries sell weapons that have been used to attack India for many years. We Indians have never done anything to endanger Europe. So keep that in mind,” he said, arguing that Western nations often adopt inconsistent positions on international security issues.
Addressing suggestions that India was drifting away from the Gulf region due to its growing energy ties with Russia, Jaishankar dismissed the notion.
“Our largest oil supplier is Russia. Our largest gas supplier is the US and this was not the case till February 28 this year. It was Qatar. Our relationship with the Gulf is not only related to oil,” he said.
India has consistently defended its purchase of discounted Russian crude, maintaining that energy security, affordability and national interest remain the guiding principles of its energy policy despite geopolitical tensions and Western sanctions on Moscow.
