The United States has granted India temporary permission to increase its purchases of Russian oil. The decision comes against the backdrop of an escalating conflict in the Persian Gulf that has severely disrupted global energy supplies.
As reported by Hvylya, Bloomberg notes that the license, issued late Thursday, covers transactions for Russian crude oil and petroleum products loaded onto vessels before March 5. The primary condition is that the raw materials must be delivered to India and purchased by an Indian company. This emergency measure is set to expire on April 4 at 12:01 AM Washington time.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent explained the move as a necessary step to stabilize the market. "To ensure the continued flow of oil to the global market, the Treasury Department is issuing a temporary 30-day authorization allowing Indian refiners to purchase Russian oil. This intentionally short-term measure will not provide significant financial benefit to the Russian government, as it only permits transactions for oil already stranded at sea," he wrote on the social media platform X.
The move is intended to ease supply pressure and provide immediate relief to the Indian economy, which has been directly impacted by disruptions in the Middle East. According to analysts, over 22 million barrels of Russian oil are currently unsold or sitting on tankers across Asia.
The publication notes that this decision represents a significant policy shift for the Donald Trump administration, which had previously exerted intense pressure on New Delhi over its Russian energy imports. Specifically, Washington recently imposed 50% punitive tariffs on Indian goods to compel the country to halt trade with Russia.
Of the approximately 5 million barrels per day that India imports, a substantial portion traditionally comes from Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. However, much of that production is currently blocked due to the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz.