“The oil is ours, the permission is ours: America grants India an ‘expired approval’ on Russian oil.”

Washington: The United States has temporarily allowed India to accept Russian oil already in the sea in view of the temporary reduction in energy supplies, the White House has said. The announcement was made by White House Press Secretary Carolyn Leavitt.
Levitt said the decision was made after consulting with President Donald Trump, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and the national security team. He said the limited exemption has been given to India in view of the temporary reduction in global oil supplies due to the conflict involving Iran.

According to the press secretary, this Russian oil was already present in the sea and accepting it is unlikely to bring any major economic benefit to Russia. He said India has been an important ally of the US and had already stopped buying banned Russian oil, so the decision has been taken as a temporary arrangement.

Amid rising tensions in West Asia and the ongoing conflict with Iran, the US has granted a 30-day temporary waiver to Indian refineries so that energy supplies are not disrupted.

Earlier, the Trump administration had imposed 25 per cent punitive tariffs on India for buying oil from Russia. The US administration had alleged that India's purchase of Russian oil was helping Russia financially during the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

However, last month, the US and India announced the framework for an interim agreement on trade. After this, Trump issued an order to remove the 25 percent tariff imposed on India.

Trump had said that India has committed to stop importing energy directly or indirectly from Moscow and buy American energy products. The 30-day relaxation is seen as a temporary measure to stabilise global oil supplies.