On EU envoy’s ‘crackdown’ call, Jaishankar defends India reselling Russian oil as refined fuels

Responding to Josep Borrell, the EU Foreign policy chief’s remarks calling for action against Indian refined products from Russian crude, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday (local time) advised him to look at EU Council regulations.

“Look at EU Council regulations, Russian crude is substantially transformed in the third country and not treated as Russian anymore. I would urge you to look at Council’s Regulation 833/2014,” said Jaishankar.

This comes after the bloc’s chief diplomat earlier said that the EU should crack down on India reselling Russian oil as refined fuels including diesel into Europe as Western nations move to tighten sanctions on Moscow’s energy sector.

“India buys Russian oil, it’s normal… ” said EU’s Foreign policy chief Borrell but wants the bloc to act on refined products coming from India-made Russian crude in an interview with Financial Times.

While Borrell met with Jaishankar at the trade technology talks in Brussels, he was not present at the press conference that followed.
In his place, EU Executive Vice President on Competition, Margrethe Vestager said that there was “no doubt about the legal basis of the sanctions”, and that the EU and India would have the discussion as “friends… with an extended hand and of course, not a pointed finger.”

Along with Jaishankar, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal, and Union Minister of State for Entrepreneurship, Skill Development, Electronics and Technology Rajeev Chandrasekhar was also in the meeting.

Also read: India, EU to coordinate policies concerning semiconductor sector; Trade and Technology Council discusses resilient value chains

Jaishankar on Monday arrived in Brussels for the last leg of his three-nation visit covering Bangladesh, Sweden and Belgium.

Earlier also Jaishankar had defended India’s imports from Russia while indirectly criticising the West for pressurising New Delhi to minimise its trade with Russia in view of its military action in Ukraine.

Source ANI