Responding to the statement of EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell regarding the ban on the purchase of Russian oil, Indian Foreign Minister S Jaishankar has said that he should read the rules and regulations of the Council.
According to NDTV, Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar has given advice and said, “Look at the rules and regulations of the European Union.” Russian crude oil is substantially diverted to a third country and is no longer considered Russian oil. I urge you to refer to Council Regulation 833/2014.
The Indian foreign minister’s statement came after an interview with EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, in which he said that the European Union will take measures against the import of Indian petroleum products that can use Russian oil.
He further said that the European Union has no objection to the oil trade between Russia and India, but they want the European Union to crack down on the products coming from India that use Russian oil.
S. Jaishankar arrived in Brussels on Monday after visiting Bangladesh, Sweden, and Belgium.
He had earlier defended imports from Russia, criticising the West for pressuring New Delhi to cut trade with Russia in the face of an attack in Ukraine.
He wondered how Europe could make arbitrary choices to meet its energy needs and asked India to say otherwise.
During a press conference with the German foreign minister in December, the Indian foreign minister said that New Delhi’s trade with Russia is at a low level of $12–13 billion compared to European countries.