'Trying to ban India, others ... ': Russia’s Lavrov hits out at US over oil curbs; slams 'war' against tankers

Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov has accused the United States of trying to prevent India and other countries from buying Russian oil, describing Washington’s policies as coercive and aimed at achieving global economic domination.

In an interview with TV BRICS, reported by Sputnik, Lavrov alleged that the US was using sanctions, tariffs and other restrictive measures to pressure nations into abandoning Russian energy resources in favour of more expensive American supplies.




“They (US) tell us that the Ukraine problem should be resolved. In Anchorage, we accepted the US Proposal… The US position was important to us. By accepting their proposal, we seem to have completed the task of resolving the Ukrainian issue and moving on to a dull-scale, broad-based and mutually beneficial cooperation. So far, the reality is quite the opposite,” Lavrov said.

“New sanctions are imposed, a ‘war’ against tankers in the open sea is being waged in violation of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea. They are trying to ban India and our other partners from buying cheap, affordable Russian energy resources (Europe has long been banned), and are forcing them to buy US LNG at exorbitant prices,” he said.

Lavrov claimed that the United States had set itself the goal of controlling global energy markets and supply routes.

He described American measures as “coercive” and incompatible with fair competition, adding that tariffs, sanctions and outright prohibitions were being used as tools to meet these objectives.

“We have to take all of this into account while remaining open just like India, China, Indonesia and Brazil to cooperation with all countries, including major powers such as the United States. We are in a situation where the Americans themselves are creating artificial obstacles along the way,” he said.

Lavrov’s remarks come amid growing speculation about India’s future oil purchases from Russia following recent developments in US-India trade relations.

On Monday, foreign secretary Vikram Misri reiterated that India’s energy policy would continue to be guided by national interest, stressing that the country’s priorities were “adequate availability, fair pricing and reliability of supply.”

India has neither confirmed nor denied reports that it plans to reduce or halt imports of Russian crude after the United States rolled back a 25 per cent tariff imposed on Indian goods over New Delhi’s purchases of Russian crude.

US President Donald Trump recently signed an executive order removing the additional tariff. The decision followed the announcement of a trade deal between the two countries, under which Washington agreed to reduce tariffs on Indian goods to 18 per cent from 50 per cent.

When asked about Trump’s assertion, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal reiterated India’s long-standing position on energy security.

“So far as India’s energy sourcing is concerned, the government has stated publicly on several occasions that ensuring the energy security of 1.4 billion Indians is the supreme priority of the government,” Jaiswal had said last week.

“Diversifying our energy sourcing in keeping with objective market conditions and evolving international dynamics is at the core of our strategy to ensure this. All of India’s actions are taken and will be taken with this in mind,” he added.

India’s continued purchase of discounted Russian crude has been a sensitive issue in its relations with the United States, with several American officials alleging that such imports help finance Moscow’s war effort in Ukraine.