Washington: US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Karen Donfried today said that the US does not intend to impose sanctions on India for buying oil from Russia.
He said the US relationship with India is the most result-oriented, and even though the US and India may have different policy perspectives, both countries are committed to upholding the order based on international rules, and respecting territorial integrity and sovereignty.
US Assistant Secretary of State for Energy Resources Geoffrey Pyot said the US has “no problem” with India’s approach to buying oil from Russia, but “we value the ongoing dialogue on this issue”.
He also mentioned how energy security has also been a very important part of most of the recent bilateral discussions.
Meanwhile, senior US diplomats justified the maximum price restrictions imposed on Russian oil and said that even though India is not bargaining, it was a good opportunity to bargain to get a better price.
In December, US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said the maximum price ban would “bring down Russian oil prices”, and that countries like China and India would be able to negotiate a sharp reduction in prices.
The idea behind the maximum price ban was to reduce the earnings of Russia, which is waging the war in Ukraine, and US diplomats have indicated that they believe that these restrictions are also yielding the desired results.