During his first visit to Austria and India's first visit in 27 years, the External Affairs Minister of India, Dr. S. Jaishankar, has been direct in his responses to Austrian media who attempt to exert pressure on India over problems like Russian oil imports and terrorism.
In an interview, he was asked about why India still purchased weapons from Russia and has increased energy imports. Does that imply that India was gaining from the conflict?
In response, EAM said, "During these 60 years, western countries, including those in Europe, have sold arms to a military dictatorship in Pakistan. The only country that was willing to help us at that time was the Soviet Union. So if we have an arrangement with Russia, it is a direct consequence of Western preferences for military regimes in our part of the world. As for today, when you build a military relationship like that, you can't get away with it overnight and say, I am done now. Finally, every government has a basic obligation to ensure the security of their country. So if there is an expectation in Europe that we will sacrifice our security because Europe has a problem, then I don't think that's a reasonable expectation."
During the interview with Austria's top newspaper, EAM was yet again questioned about India's financial advantage from the Russia-Ukraine war.
He said that "I vehemently reject politically and also mathematically that India is a war profiteer. Oil prices have doubled as a result of the Ukraine war. In such a situation, even if you get a better price than other countries, you still pay much more than before. The oil market is also driven up by sanctions against Iran or by what is happening in Venezuela. In such a situation, it makes diplomatic and economic sense to look around the market for the best deal. Would Europe pay more if it didn't have to?"
The interviewer then asked him if they had no qualms about using oil purchases to fund Russia's war. To that the Minister responded "Europe imported about $120 billion worth of energy from Russia after the war broke out. That's six times as much as we bought.”