Washington has said the exemption will ensure stability in the global market amid havoc in the Middle East

The US has granted India a 30-day waiver to purchase oil from Russia, a top official has said.

The move, according to US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, is aimed at ensuring stability in the global oil market amid a mounting energy crisis, as the US/Israeli war with Iran escalates.

"India is an essential partner of the United States, and we fully anticipate that New Delhi will ramp up purchases of US oil. This stop-gap measure will alleviate pressure caused by Iran's attempt to take global energy hostage," Bessent claimed in a post on X.

He also pointed out that the move will not benefit Moscow as it only authorizes transactions involving oil already stranded at sea.

The US earlier claimed that India had agreed to stopoil purchases from Russiawhen it announced a trade deal with New Delhi in February.

Indian officials have not acknowledged the claim and have repeatedly said the country's energy purchases are dictated by its national interests.

US President Donald Trump had imposed 25% punitive tariffs on India for buying Russian oil in August 2025, insisting that New Delhi's purchases were helping fund Russia's military operation. The levy was waived after the trade deal was announced.

After a Supreme Court verdict struck down the tariffs, the White House initially set a rate at 10% before Trump announced the global rate would beincreased to 15%.

India will ensure theavailability and affordabilityof petroleum products for consumers amid the escalating crisis in the Middle East, the country's Oil Ministry said on Monday.

New Delhi imports 85% of its oil and nearly half of its natural gas. About half of the country's oil supplies and 55% of LNG shipments are routed through the Strait of Hormuz, which was closed off shortly after the beginning of the US/Israeli war on Iran.

India is looking torevivelarge purchases of Russian crude amid the ongoing crisis, just weeks after Washington pressured it to scale down imports, Bloomberg reported on Monday.

Oil purchases by India, the world's third-largest importer and consumer of crude, ensureglobal energy security, a top Russian aide had said in February. India became a key market for Russian crude following the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022.

New Delhi has been graduallyreducingoil imports from Russia and had sourced more supplies from Gulf nations and the US in January 2026. Russia's share in India's oil imports fell to less than 20% for the first time since May 2022, The Hindu reported.

(RT.com)