During a visit to New Delhi, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov praised the Indian government’s containment of the war in Ukraine. “We appreciate that India is looking at the situation as a whole and not unilaterally,” Lavrov said Friday at the start of his talks with Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar.
According to news agency reports, Lavrov accused the West of reducing all major international affairs to the Ukraine crisis. Russia is interested in a “balanced world order”. During the talks, Indian Foreign Minister Jaishankar highlighted that New Delhi prefers a solution to the conflict through dialogue and diplomacy. After the talks, Lavrov was also received by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“Position a little unstable”
India, while calling for a ceasefire and a diplomatic solution to the war, has not yet condemned the Russian attack on Ukraine. President Joe Biden therefore described India’s position as “a little shaky”. With several diplomatic visits, the various sides are now trying to influence India. Increasingly, the question is whether India could undermine Western sanctions by buying cheaper Russian raw materials. “Whatever India wants to buy from us, we are ready for mutually acceptable discussion and cooperation,” Lavrov told Indian media on Friday.
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In contrast, Biden’s deputy security adviser for economic affairs, Daleep Singh, who also visited New Delhi this week, threatened India with “consequences” if it used local payment mechanisms to circumvent US sanctions. On the other hand, British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said she would not tell India what to do. Like Lavrov, Truss landed in New Delhi on Thursday.
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India’s foreign minister has countered criticism of the oil deals by pointing out that Europeans are the biggest buyers of Russian oil and gas. The Europeans point out that they are currently reducing business. India has added millions of barrels of cheaper Russian oil since the start of the war.