Director of the White House National Economic Council Brian Deese warned India against a “more explicit strategic alignment” with Russia, saying this could have “significant and long-term” consequences for New Delhi. Addressing a media briefing hosted by the Christian Science Monitor on Wednesday, United States (US) President Joe Biden’s top economic advisor said, “There are certainly areas where we have been disappointed by both China and India’s decisions in the context of the invasion.”
The comments echo a similar statement made by US Deputy National Security Advisor (NSA) for Economics Daleep Singh during his visit to New Delhi last week, when he met with Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla, Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal, and other officials from the Prime Minister’s (PM) Office, the National Security Council, and the External Affairs Ministry.
Prior to the discussions, Singh warned that the US is resolutely against a “rapid acceleration” in Indian imports of Russian energy or any other products that have been sanctioned. He underscored that the purpose of his trip was to “explain the mechanisms of our sanctions” and “the importance of joining us,” before warning that the US will exact “consequences” on countries who “actively attempt to circumvent or backfill the sanctions.” In this regard, Singh also recommended a shift in India’s high dependency on Russia for defence equipment, warning that this could pose a “material risk” to its ability to protect itself.
Along these same lines, an anonymous senior Biden administration official said in the same week: “[The] U.S. has no objection to India buying Russian oil provided it buys it at discount, without significantly increasing from previous years.” However, he added that only “some increase is allowed,” possibly hinting at sanctions or other punitive measures. In fact, he said that the proposed rupee-ruble trade must be “in compliance with sanctions,” adding, “If not, they are exposing themselves to a great risk.”
Crucially, even Biden himself has criticised India for its “somewhat shaky” position on the Ukrainian crisis.
#WATCH India's import of Russian energy represents only 1 to 2 percent of their total energy imports: White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki pic.twitter.com/4imaiZGAvi
— ANI (@ANI) April 4, 2022
Nevertheless, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki has said that the US understands the reasoning behind India’s decision to purchase discounted oil from Russia but warned that although the Biden administration will not be placing secondary sanctions against its key ally, India must avoid falling on the “wrong side of history.”
Furthermore, in an interview with the Hindustan Times on Friday, Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Donald Lu underscored that it is “no secret” that both sides see the Ukraine crisis “from different perspectives,” which gives the “strategic partners” reason to “have good communication and good discussions at every level” to explain their respective positions and “look for places of convergence where we can work together.”
When asked about the possibility of sanctions on India, Lu replied: “What I really want to say is it’s important for us, the United States, to show that our relationship with India is going to be the more valuable relationship, and for India to see value in working with us.”
Our Deputy National Security Advisor conveyed clearly what the consequences of violating sanctions would be & making clear that we do not think India should accelerate or increase imports of Russian energy: White House Spox pic.twitter.com/VwZnTMyAhb
— Sidhant Sibal (@sidhant) April 7, 2022
Despite these warnings and attempts to pull New Delhi away from Moscow and closer to Washington, India doesn’t appear to have shifted from its position and continues to explore trade relations with Russia. New Delhi has already purchased discounted Russian oil and is even considering a Rupee-Ruble exchange mechanism to bypass sanctions against Russian financial institutions. In fact, the Financial Times recently reported that India has imported 360,000 barrels per day in March, a fourfold increase from 2021.
India has also abstained from voting on resolutions in both the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) that sought to condemn Russia’s military actions in Ukraine and called for a withdrawal of its troops.
That being said, during Tuesday’s UNSC meeting, India “unequivocally” condemned the “deeply disturbing” reports of “civilian killings in Bucha,” and called for an “independent investigation” into the allegations against Russian forces. Nevertheless, while India condemned the violence in Bucha, it still fell refused to outright name Russia or its troops as the actors responsible for the massacre.
Moreover, while addressing the Parliament on Wednesday, Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar underscored that Russia will remain an “important partner in a variety of areas.” He added that like other nations, India, too, was “assessing the implications” of the Russia-Ukraine conflict and “deciding what is best for [its] national interest.”
To this end, at an event with British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss last week, Jaishankar highlighted the hypocrisy of Western countries on India’s oil purchases by pointing out: “Europe bought 15% more oil and gas from Russia than it did a month before. Most of the major buyers of oil and gas from Russia are in Europe.” He also emphasised that most of India’s energy supplies come from the Middle East, with less than 1% being imported from Russia.
Meanwhile, the US has vowed to continue working with India to align efforts and reduce its reliance on Russian products. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki has said that the US will support India to diversify its imports. Furthermore, on Tuesday, US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin announced that Washington is ready to take Russia’s place and provide defence equipment to New Delhi to reduce its dependence on Russian weapons. According to an official cited by Bloomberg Quint, the US is also working with its G7 allies to collaborate with India on this matter as well.