India’s oil imports guided by national interest, says foreign secretary

India’s decisions on importing oil will continue to be guided by “national interests”, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said on Monday.

The official neither confirmed nor denied United States President Donald Trump’s claim that New Delhi has committed to ending purchases of Russian oil.

Addressing reporters at a briefing on the visit of Seychelles President Patrick Herminie, Misri said that whether decisions were taken by the government or by businesses, national interest would remain the guiding factor.

The foreign secretary said India’s energy policy was driven by “adequate availability, fair pricing and reliability of supply”, describing energy sourcing as a “rather complex matrix of issues”.

Misri added that India’s approach was to maintain multiple sources of supply and diversify them to ensure stability. “I would say that the more diversified we are in this area, the more secure we are,” he said.

India is a net importer of oil and gas, with around 80% to 85% of its energy requirements met through imports.

Notably, Misri did not respond directly to Trump’s executive order issued on Friday that removed the additional 25% punitive tariff on Indian goods imposed for New Delhi’s purchase of Russian oil, bringing the effective US tariff rate on Indian imports down to 18%.

The order warned that the tariffs could be reimposed if India resumed or increased such purchases.

Indian goods had been facing a combined US tariff rate of 50%, including a punitive levy of 25% imposed in August for buying Russian oil.

The US has repeatedly alleged that India’s purchases of Russian oil helped fuel the war in Ukraine, while New Delhi has maintained that its oil purchases were aimed at ensuring its own energy security.

While India continues to import crude from dozens of countries, nearly 25% of its oil imports are still sourced from Russia. However, imports from Russia fell to a 38-month low in December and major refiners including Indian Oil, Bharat Petroleum and Reliance Industries have avoided placing advance orders for April, The Hindu reported.

Misri’s remarks came amid mounting scrutiny of the framework for an interim trade agreement between New Delhi and Washington and ahead of a briefing to a parliamentary committee on external affairs scheduled for Tuesday.

The committee, chaired by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, is expected to be briefed on trade agreements with the European Union and the US, as well as on India’s strained commercial ties with Bangladesh.

The Congress has alleged that the trade agreement amounts to a “surrender” by the Narendra Modi-led government, and has argued that the interests of farmers and small and medium industries will be hurt by the deal.