Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar enter a hall during a meeting in Moscow, Russia, November 8, 2022. Maxim Shipenkov/Pool via REUTERSResponding to a question on imports of Russian oil, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar Tuesday stated that buying oil from Moscow works to India’s advantage and asserted that he would “like to keep that going”.
India’s procurement of discounted Russian crude oil has seen a massive increase in the last few months, despite rising disquiet in many Western capitals.
Jaishankar’s remarks came in the backdrop of his meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Moscow.
“We have seen that India-Russia relationship has worked to advantage so if it works to my advantage I would like to keep that going,” said Jaishankar, who is in Moscow for a two-day visit.
#WATCH | We have seen that India-Russia relationship has worked to advantage so if it works to my advantage I would like to keep that going: EAM S Jaishankar during a press briefing, in Moscow on Russian oil imports pic.twitter.com/ddcB7ryAfH
— ANI (@ANI) November 8, 2022
“As regard to oil supply issue, there is stress on the energy market… But as the world’s 3rd largest consumer of oil and gas, it is our fundamental obligation to ensure that the Indian consumer have the best possible access on most advantageous terms to international market,” the External Affairs Minister added.
Describing India’s relationship with Russia as “exceptionally” steady, Jaishankar underlined that the objective now is to stitch a mutually beneficial and long-term engagement in the backdrop of the increasing economic cooperation.
In his opening remarks following the meeting with Lavrov, Jaishankar pointed out that the Covid-19 pandemic, financial pressures and trade difficulties had taken a toll on the global economy.
“We are now seeing the consequences of the Ukraine conflict on top of that. There are also the more perennial issues of terrorism and climate change, both of which have a disruptive impact on progress and prosperity,” he added.
Both leaders spoke on a wide range of issues pertaining to bilateral, regional and global matters. Jaishakar arrived in the Russian Moscow on Monday evening. This is the fifth meeting between both leaders after the Ukraine conflict began in February.
His visit assumes significance as it comes days before the G-20 summit in Bali, scheduled for November 15-16. This will be the first time since the war broke out in Ukraine that Putin and the western leaders, including US President Joe Biden, will be in the same room.
Jaishankar’s trip is being seen as a key moment, where Delhi is being billed as a potential negotiator between Russia and Ukraine. He had last visited Moscow in July 2021. It is learnt that India has intervened quietly in the past few months, when there has been a deadlock. In July, India had weighed in with Russia on the grain shipment from ports in the Black Sea.
In the run-up to Jaishankar’s visit, Putin has been effusive about Modi and India. He had praised India by calling its citizens “talented” and “driven”, a week after he showered praises on Modi and called him a “true patriot”.
On the Ukraine conflict, India has been maintaining that the crisis should be resolved through diplomacy and dialogue and has not yet officially condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine. At a bilateral meeting with Putin in the Uzbek city of Samarkand on September 16, Modi had told him that “today’s era is not of war”.
With inputs from ANI & PTI