'Quietly, it pleased all': NYT report says India's Russian oil purchase helped global economy

File photo of PM Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin (AFP)

With US President Donald Trump taking a bold gambit on India ties over its purchase of Russian oil, the American media has noted how New Delhi's decision once pleased everybody, including Washington.

A report in The New York Times said that India's purchase of Russian oil during the Ukraine war not only benefited both the countries but the entire global economy, in a way.

Read Also: US media reacts to Trump's 'onslaught' against India: ‘Biggest gamble yet’

The report mentioned how Russian oil has now become a weapon for Trump as both sides have failed to reach an optimum trade deal so far.

It pointed out that India stepped up purchase of Russian oil post the war in Ukraine (in 2022) after the rest of Europe halted energy trade with Moscow.

"Quietly, this had pleased everybody. The Biden administration, which barred American companies from importing most Russian energy products, worried that too successful an embargo would upset global oil prices. Rerouting Russian crude kept the markets relatively stable; Europe was able to buy fuels refined in India; and Indian companies made a profit along the way," the report said.

It suggested that though it will not be that difficult for India to pivot from Russian oil, the political messaging will not be ideal if New Delhi gives in to Trump's demands.

The report noted that "India is proudly sovereign, and democratic", adding that PM Modi "cannot afford to play patsy to Trump."

The news report corroborates the earlier position taken by Washington vis-a-vis India's oil imports from Russia.

In 2024, then US ambassador to India, Eric Garcetti, said that India bought discounted Russian oil (at a price cap) at the behest of US as part of a broader policy design to prevent energy prices from going up.

“They bought Russian oil because we wanted somebody to buy Russian oil at a price cap; that was not a violation. It was actually the design of the policy because, as a commodity, we didn’t want the oil prices going up, and they fulfilled that," Garcetti, who was then a serving ambassador, had said.

If India were to stop buying 1.7 million barrels per day of Russian crude, about 2% of global supply, world prices would jump from the current $66, Reuters had earlier reported, quoting analysts.

Even the Indian government had confirmed this earlier when Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri told CNBC in July that India's purchase of Russian oil helped keep global prices in check. He said that the US itself had encouraged it.

The Ministry of external affairs has also criticised the “double standards” of the United States and the European Union, pointing out that they continue trading with Russia even as they press India to halt its oil imports from the country.