India’s Resale of Russian Oil Under Scrutiny by US Treasury

The US Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent, has made a significant statement regarding India’s dealings with Russian oil. He claims that India is earning billions by reselling the oil. Bessent stated in a CNBC interview that India is buying oil from Russia and then selling it at a profit. He mentioned that India’s profits from these transactions have reached $16 billion (equivalent to 1600 crore rupees). Bessent also defended the US tariffs imposed on India and explained why China hasn’t faced similar penalties. He highlighted that, before the conflict in Ukraine, less than 1% of India’s oil originated from Russia, but this figure has now climbed to 42%. He views this as an unacceptable case of profiting from market discrepancies. When asked about China, Bessent clarified that China has not been penalized because its imports from Russia are lower than India’s. Pre-war, 13% of China’s oil came from Russia, and this figure is now at 16%.