Putin Defends India's Russian Fuel Purchases Amid US Pressure: Why US Can, But India Can't?

Putin Defends India's Russian Fuel Purchases Amid US Pressure

On the occasion of a two-day state visit, Russian President Vladimir Putin publicly questioned the United States' pressure on India not to buy Russian fuel, asking, 'If the United States can buy it, why can't India?'

Putin made the comments in an interview with India Today, which aired hours after he landed in New Delhi. During the visit, both countries are seeking to boost mutual trade and are committed to expanding the types of goods settled in transactions.

'The US Itself Is Buying Russian Nuclear Fuel'

New Delhi and Moscow have strong relations dating back to the Soviet era, and Russia has been India's main source of weapons for decades. Despite Western sanctions imposed on Moscow after the start of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict in February 2022, India has gradually become the largest buyer of Russian seaborne oil.

However, due to punitive tariffs imposed by the United States on Indian goods and the tightening of sanctions on Russia, India's crude oil imports are expected to hit a three-year low this month. The administration of former US President Donald Trump claimed that India's purchase of cheap Russian oil helps fund Moscow's operations in the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.

Putin told India Today, 'The United States itself still buys nuclear fuel from us for its nuclear power plants. That's also fuel, and if the United States has the right to buy our fuel, why shouldn't India enjoy the same rights? This is a question worth exploring in depth, and we are ready to discuss this issue, including with President Trump.'

The Indian side has indicated that Trump's tariffs are unfair and unreasonable, and pointed to the ongoing trade between the United States and Moscow. The United States and the European Union continue to import energy and commodities in large quantities from Russia worth billions of dollars, ranging from liquefied natural gas to enriched uranium.

'Russia-India Oil Trade Is Operating Smoothly'

When asked whether India's oil purchases had decreased under Western pressure, Putin said, 'There has certainly been a slight decrease in the total volume of trade for the first nine months of this year, but this is just a slight adjustment. Overall, our trade volume has almost maintained its previous level.'

He added, 'The trade in petroleum products and crude oil... the trade in Russian oil in India is operating smoothly.'

When asked how India and Russia should respond to Trump and his tariffs, Putin said that the US president's advisors believe that implementing such tariff policies ultimately benefits the US economy. 'We hope that all violations of the rules of the World Trade Organization will eventually be corrected,' he said.

Expanding and Diversifying Trade

India and Russia aim to increase bilateral trade to $100 billion by 2030. Trade between the two countries has grown more than fivefold from about $13 billion in 2021 to nearly $69 billion in 2024-25, but this is almost entirely driven by Indian energy imports.

From April to August 2025, bilateral trade fell back to $28.25 billion, reflecting a decline in crude oil imports.

Meanwhile, India is looking for new export destinations to absorb its goods affected by the punitive tariffs imposed by Trump at 50%.

Kremlin Deputy Chief of Staff Oreshkin said earlier on Thursday at a business conference in New Delhi that Russia hopes to import more Indian goods to balance bilateral trade, the current trade structure of which is heavily skewed towards energy.

Indian Trade Minister Piyush Goyal said that New Delhi hopes to achieve diversification in exports to Russia, increasing sales of automobiles, electronics, data processing equipment, heavy machinery, industrial components, textiles, and food.