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Kremlin says decline in India's imports of Russian oil may be temporary
His remarks came ahead of President Vladimir Putin's two-day visit to New Delhi from Dec. 4.
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Reuters - Tue, 02, Dec 2025
- 08:46 EST
- 13
FILE PHOTO: Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov attends a meeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin with the heads of government of the member countries of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) in Moscow, Russia November 18, 2025. / REUTERS/Ramil Sitdikov/Pool/File Photo
India's imports of Russian oil may decline for only "a brief period" as Moscow plans to boost supplies, using sophisticated technology to avert the impact of Western sanctions, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said on Dec. 2.
His remarks came ahead of President Vladimir Putin's two-day visit to New Delhi from Dec. 4, looking to restore defense and energy ties as the South Asian nation is set to trim its Russian oil purchases this month to at least a three-year low.
Russia's top buyer of seaborne oil, India has cut crude imports from Moscow under pressure from Western sanctions, particularly by Washington on Moscow's top oil producers, Rosneft and Lukoil.
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"There can be, for a very brief period of time, insignificant decreases in the volume of oil trade," Peskov told Indian journalists in response to a question about the impact of sanctions.
Working to build the necessary environment for buyers
Russia is the top oil supplier to India, the world's third-biggest oil importer and consumer.
Moscow is working to build the "necessary environment" for buyers who seek its oil, Peskov said, speaking by video link organized by Russia's Sputnik news agency.
"We have deep experience in performing under the regime of these illegal sanctions," Peskov added.
"We have our own technologies in doing that. We will continue to make those technologies more sophisticated should this practice of sanctions continue."
Trade between Russia and India should be secured from pressure from third countries, he said, adding that payment methods would feature in the leaders' talks.
Activities of Indian refiners
Indian refiners, such as Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd, Hindustan Petroleum Corp, and HPCL-Mittal Energy Ltd, have stopped buying Russian oil.
State-run Indian Oil Corp. has placed orders to buy Russian oil from non-sanctioned entities, while Bharat Petroleum Corp. is in an advanced stage of negotiations for Russian oil imports.
Russia-backed Indian refiner Nayara Energy, partly owned by Rosneft, is exclusively processing Russian oil after other suppliers pulled back following British and EU sanctions.
Russia wants India to continue to provide support to Nayara to boost its local sales and capacity use.
Reliance Industries Ltd., formerly Russia's top Indian client, has said it loaded Russian oil cargoes "precommitted" by Oct. 22 and will process any arriving after Nov. 20 at its refinery geared to domestic supply.
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