New Delhi, Aug 4 (IANS) As US President Donald Trump threatened to substantially raise tariffs on India over Russian oil purchase, the fact is that America has actively encouraged such imports by India in the past for strengthening global energy market stability.

In November 2022, US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen remarked: “The United States is happy for India to continue buying as much Russian oil as it wants, including at prices above a G7-imposed price cap mechanism, if it steers clear of Western insurance, finance and maritime services bound by the cap.”

In March 2024, Amos Hochstein, former US President Joe Biden’s energy and global infrastructure adviser, said, “At the end of the day, my goal is not to take it off the market, I’m not looking to take these tankers, take the crude, the product, off the market”.

In February 2024, US Assistant Secretary of State Geoffrey Pyatt acknowledged India’s role in stabilising global energy markets, saying, “India has played a key role in efforts to stabilise global energy markets through its purchases of Russian crude.”

In May 2024, US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti admitted that India bought Russian oil because the US wanted somebody to buy Russian oil.

“The US allowed the purchase to take place to ensure the prices did not go up globally,” he added. Garcetti also highlighted that due to this arrangement, global oil prices didn’t shoot up and “India delivered on that.”

Meanwhile, the Indian government has categorically said that the targeting of the country by the US over Russian oil purchase is unjustified and unreasonable, after American President Donald Trump threatened to impose hefty tariffs on New Delhi.

An official statement said that, like any major economy, “India will take all necessary measures to safeguard its national interests and economic security”.

India has been targeted by the United States and the European Union for importing oil from Russia after the commencement of the Ukraine conflict.

Where the United States is concerned, it continues to import from Russia uranium hexafluoride for its nuclear industry, palladium for its EV industry, fertilisers, as well as chemicals.

–IANS

na/dan