Days after India’s decision to not support the price cap on Russian oil announced by the G7 countries and their allies, Dmytro Kuleba, the Foreign Minister of Ukraine tried to blame India for purchasing Russian oil at the expense of the sufferings of common Ukrainians.
“You enjoy the benefit of cheap Russian oil because someone in Ukraine is dying due to Russian aggression,” he said on Tuesday.
The Ukraine Minister also asked its Indian partners to extensively help the country as a ‘balancing act’ if they wish to continue to buy Russian oil at cheap prices. “Every country has a right about what to do for its economy to benefit. But the message that we are conveying to our Indian partners is very simple. You have the opportunity to buy cheap Russian oil. Russia is selling you cheap oil because it stands under enormous pressure from sanctions and other types of pressure. And the reason is its aggression against Ukraine,” the Foreign Minister said.
“If you take this element into account and continue to buy Russian oil then as a balancing act you begin to support Ukraine more heavily in a more extensive way because you understand that you enjoy the benefit of buying cheap Russian oil because someone in Ukraine is dying,” he added, the video of which was shared by journalist Sidhant Sibal on Twitter.
On December 11, Russia happened to welcome India’s decision to not support the price cap on Russian oil announced by the G7 countries and their allies. According to the reports, the price cap on Russian oil was imposed on December 5 by the G7 countries and their allies. the Group of Seven major nations, the European Union, and Australia agreed to a $60 per barrel price ceiling on Russian seaborne crude oil after EU members overcame Poland’s opposition.
The price limitation aims to limit Russia’s earnings as punishment for its war on Ukraine while ensuring Moscow continues to supply the global market. In an obvious reaction, Russia rejected the oil price ceiling and warned the West of retaliation. India meanwhile reiterated that it will continue to purchase oil from Russia with Moscow assuring that it will directly negotiate with its crude buyers. Hardeep Singh Puri, India’s Union Minister for Petroleum and Natural Gas also stated that India’s oil import from Russia is very limited and that India now sources oil from 39 countries including Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and UAE, and is also exploring trade possibilities in Africa.
Also on December 7, EAM S Jaishankar stated that Indian refiners look for the best deal they can find and that the Indian government does not direct them particularly to buy Russian oil. He reiterated in the Parliament that India has always urged both Ukraine and Russia to resolve disputes through dialogue and return to diplomacy. As per the statement issued by the Russian Foreign Ministry, India’s imports of Russian oil surged to Rs 16.35 million tonnes till August 2022.
Earlier last week also, Dmytro Kuleba, the Foreign Minister of Ukraine had blamed India for purchasing Russian oil at the expense of the sufferings of common Ukrainians. “The opportunity for India to buy Russian oil at a cheap price comes from the fact that Ukrainians are suffering from the Russian aggression and die every day. They are living in houses without heating, hot water, and electricity. And this fact, we hope, should be appreciated by those who make decisions on purchasing Russian oil,” he alleged.
Dmytro Kuleba further claimed that the Ukrainian government is equally critical of all countries that are purchasing Russian oil in bulk. Later, he contradicted his statement by applauding the decision to put a price cap ($60 per barrel) on Russian oil imports by the European Union and G7 countries.