Munich, February 15 US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has stated that India has committed to ceasing the purchase of Russian oil, days after New Delhi reiterated that "national interests" will be the "guiding factor" for India's energy procurement.
US President Donald Trump, while announcing a trade deal with New Delhi early in February, claimed that India had agreed not to procure crude oil from Russia.
Since then, the US has repeatedly stated that India will stop buying oil from Russia.
Speaking at the Munich Security Conference on Saturday, Rubio said, "In our conversations with India, we have received their commitment to stop buying additional Russian oil."
Rubio was responding to a question about the Russia-Ukraine war and the sanctions imposed on Moscow.
After announcing the deal, Trump issued an executive order to roll back the additional 25 per cent tariffs he had imposed on India in August last year for India's procurement of crude oil from Russia.
Earlier, India had stated that it would maintain multiple sources for crude oil purchases and diversify them to ensure stability in the supply chain, with national interests remaining the "guiding factor" for procurement, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said this week.
