Petrol Import From Russia: Union Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas, Hardeep Singh Puri said on Saturday that there is no pressure on India to release Russian oil. Hardeep Singh Puri said these things while talking to reporters in Washington. In a bilateral meeting with US Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm, Puri said the Indian government has a moral duty to provide energy to its citizens and will continue to buy oil from wherever it wants to.

According to media reports quoting a State Department official, the US is in deep talks with India regarding India's dependence on Russian weapons and oil. The official claimed that Indian representatives are starting to look to other markets to meet their demands as they are trying to become less dependent on Moscow for oil purchases.

Puri highlighted that India is one of the largest oil importers and India's per capita energy consumption is expected to increase demand which is currently one-third of the global average. Puri further stressed that the demand for fuel is expected to increase as the country's economy grows.

Significantly, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar had also told about India's decision to continue buying Russian oil in several forums. Recently, Jaishankar said that PM Modi's advice on this issue was to do what is best for the country. "Due to the Russia-Ukraine conflict, petrol prices doubled. We had pressure to buy oil but Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the government were of the view that we have to do what is best for our country," Jaishankar said.