External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar of India responded to Josep Borrell, the EU Foreign policy chief, who called for action against Indian refined products from Russian crude. Jaishankar advised Borrell to consider the EU Council regulations that state Russian crude is substantially transformed in a third country and is not treated as Russian anymore. He specifically pointed out Council’s Regulation 833/2014.
Borrell had previously urged the EU to crack down on India reselling Russian oil as refined fuels, including diesel, into Europe, as Western nations tightened sanctions on Moscow’s energy sector. However, Jaishankar defended India’s imports from Russia, emphasizing that India’s trade with Russia is at a small level compared to European countries. He also questioned Europe’s ability to prioritize its own energy needs while simultaneously pressuring India to reduce its trade with Russia due to the situation in Ukraine.
During their meeting in Brussels, Borrell and Jaishankar discussed trade and technology. Although Borrell was absent from the subsequent press conference, EU Executive Vice President on Competition, Margrethe Vestager, stated that there was no doubt about the legal basis of the sanctions. She emphasized that the EU and India would engage in discussions as friends, with an open and cooperative approach.
Jaishankar, accompanied by Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal and Union Minister of State for Entrepreneurship, Skill Development, Electronics, and Technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar, had arrived in Brussels as part of his three-nation visit, which also included Bangladesh and Sweden.
In the past, Jaishankar had defended India’s trade with Russia and criticized Western pressure to minimize it. He highlighted that India’s trade with Russia was relatively small, around USD 12-13 billion, compared to European countries. He pointed out that India had also provided Russia with certain products, emphasizing that people should not read more into it than the legitimate expectations of any trading country to increase its trade.
Jaishankar urged Borrell to examine the figures and referred him to the “Russia Fossil Fuel Tracker” website for detailed country-by-country data on imports. He emphasized the importance of understanding the trade dynamics and the legitimate interests of trading nations.
