India-Russia Oil Trade: Russian oil imports to India saw a significant drop in January 2026, days before the India-US trade deal agreement. Fresh data showed that India's merchandise imports from Russia in January came down 40.48% to $2.86 billion compared to $4.81 billion in January 2025. Hindustan Times reported that the drop was largely on account of Indian refiners reducing crude purchases from Russia.
"India’s Russian crude imports recorded a sharp 29% month-on-month reduction to the lowest volumes since the implementation of the price cap policy. These drops occurred despite total imports growing marginally. These drops were led by sharp reductions in imports by the Jamnagar refinery (-49%) and a 15% reduction by state-owned refineries in December," reported Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA).
According to government data for January 2026, a drop in Russian crude oil imports in 2025-26 began from a peak of $4.73 billion in April 2025, the month that saw the US government announce its tariffs.
Jaishankar Refuses US Pressure On India's Oil Import
Earlier, on February 14, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar asserted that India is very much wedded to its policy of "strategic autonomy" and that the country's energy procurement will be driven by factors like costs, risks, and availability. His statement came against the backdrop of Washington's claim that New Delhi has agreed to stop importing Russian crude oil. In an interactive session alongside German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul at the Munich Security Conference, Jaishankar said the global energy market is "complex" and India's oil companies will take decisions based on what they consider to be in their best interest.
ALSO READ: MEA Assures ‘Appropriate Action’ After Trump’s Old Remark On PM Modi Resurfaces Online | Video
"We are very much wedded to strategic autonomy because it is very much a part of our history and our evolution. And it is something which is very deep, it is something which cuts across the political spectrum as well," he said.
"As far as energy issues are concerned, this is a complex market today. I think the oil companies in India, as in Europe, as probably in other parts of the world, look at availability, look at costs, look at risks and take decisions that they feel are in their best interest," he said.
India-Russia Trade
Bilateral trade between India and Russia has grown rapidly and reached a record $68.7 billion in FY 2024-25, with Indian exports at $4.9 billion (mainly pharmaceuticals, chemicals, iron and steel, and marine products) and imports from Russia at $63.8 billion (primarily crude oil and petroleum products, sunflower oil, fertilizers, coking coal, and precious stones/metals). The major bilateral investments by Russia in India are in the oil and gas, petrochemicals, banking, railways and steel sectors, while Indian investments in Russia are mainly in oil and gas and pharmaceuticals sectors.
(With PTI inputs)