India free to buy oil from anywhere, Russia says after US trade deal claims

Russia has said India remains free to source crude oil from any country it chooses, playing down claims that New Delhi has agreed to stop buying Russian oil following a reported India–US trade understanding.

The statement came after US President Donald Trump said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had committed to ending purchases of Russian crude in favour of supplies from the United States and potentially Venezuela. Moscow, however, said India’s efforts to diversify energy sources are longstanding and not directed against Russia.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russia has never been India’s sole energy partner and dismissed suggestions that any shift in sourcing would be unusual or disruptive.

“We, along with all international energy experts, know that Russia is not the only supplier of oil and petroleum products to India. India has always bought oil from multiple countries. There is nothing new here,” Peskov told reporters.

He added that Russia has received no official communication from New Delhi indicating an intention to stop buying Russian crude, reiterating a position he had taken earlier this week.

Echoing that view, Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said the hydrocarbons trade remains mutually beneficial and contributes to global energy stability.

“India’s purchase of Russian hydrocarbons benefits both sides and helps maintain balance in the global energy market. We are ready to continue close cooperation with our Indian partners,” she said at a briefing.

Indian officials have consistently maintained that the country is broadening its energy basket to manage global volatility and protect domestic energy security. Trade Minister Piyush Goyal recently underlined that diversification is a strategic necessity, not a political signal.

Full replacement seen as impractical

Russian energy analysts cautioned that fully replacing Russian crude would be commercially and technically challenging for Indian refiners.

Igor Yushkov of the National Energy Security Fund noted that US shale oil is predominantly light-grade crude, while Russia supplies heavier, sulphur-rich Urals crude that Indian refineries are configured to process.

“Indian refiners would need to blend US oil with other grades, increasing costs. A simple one-to-one substitution is not possible,” Yushkov said.

He added that Russia currently ships between 1.5 and 2 million barrels per day to India—volumes the US would struggle to match. “It appears Trump is projecting the talks as a win entirely on US terms,” he said.

Yushkov also recalled that when Russia redirected oil supplies from Europe to Asia in 2022, it cut production by nearly one million barrels per day, driving global prices to around $120 a barrel and pushing US fuel prices to record highs.

India imports nearly 88% of the crude it refines into fuels such as petrol and diesel. Russian oil accounted for just 0.2% of India’s imports until 2021, but after Western nations imposed sanctions on Moscow following its February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, India emerged as the largest buyer of discounted Russian crude.

According to data from analytics firm Kpler, India’s Russian crude imports fell to about 1.1 million barrels per day in the first three weeks of January, down from an average of 1.21 million bpd in December and from over 2 million bpd at their peak in mid-2025.