"There Are Other Options In Store To Pressure Russia"
- 3.02.2026, 16:06
- 2,160
Washington is squeezing Russian oil from the Indian market.
The US is increasing energy pressure on Russia, and India, one of the main buyers of Russian oil, is becoming a key element of this strategy.
Is New Delhi really ready to completely abandon Russian oil? How serious are Donald Trump's demands and what answer can Narendra Modi give?
These are the questions Charter97.org asked Charter97.org to Oleh Belokolos, director of the Center for National Resilience Studies in Kiev and former advisor to the Ukrainian embassy in Canada and Kenya.
- So far I have not found links to official Indian sources that would confirm that such an agreement has indeed been reached. However, as we know, this is not the first time that the United States has tried to put pressure on countries that buy oil from Russia. India, among others, has already figured in such discussions several times.
As far as I understand from reports, Trump said that if India refuses to buy Russian oil, duties will be reduced or restrictions on Indian exports to the United States will be lifted altogether. I think it almost looks realizable already, because certainly the United States market is very important to India and Indian products. So the process may have already moved into some practicality. But again, I haven't seen any final reports yet.
- What will India's rejection mean for the Kremlin's economy? How badly will it hit Russia's budget and funding for the war?"
-Russia is now offering very large discounts on its oil, almost below cost, to keep its main buyers. At the same time, India continues to buy Russian oil: there is a corresponding logistics through the Persian Gulf countries. Taking advantage of very large discounts, India has remained one of the main buyers of Russian oil throughout this time.
It is clear that energy carriers, including oil, are one of Russia's main export commodities, and any sanctions in this regard will certainly aggravate the financial situation of the aggressor. There are not many buyers of Russian oil left in the world today. The sanctions are not tightening as fast as we would like in Ukraine, but nevertheless this process continues, and all this affects the state of the Russian budget.
How much is this interconnected? Of course, it is directly related to the possibility of continuing aggression. But we should realize that oil, although it is one of Russia's most important export commodities, is not the only one. Therefore, it is extremely important that the European Union act more decisively in this direction - not limiting itself to individual sectoral sanctions and restrictions, but acting faster, including on those products, which, unfortunately, the EU continues to buy from Russia until today.
So, this is a complex issue. And, of course, the effect may not be instantaneous, but in the aggregate, all these measures naturally complicate the budgetary capabilities of the aggressor country.
- There is an opinion that this is Trump's move before possible negotiations with Russia. What concessions can Putin make to avoid this?
- The negotiating tactic in this case is that the United States, on the one hand, acts as a mediator and, on the other hand, pushes Russia to change its maximalist position.
In this regard, tightening sanctions on Russian exports is one of the levers that the White House administration has and expects to use further. I think that there are other options in store to put pressure on Russia, including financial ones. In particular, it could be a question of releasing Venezuelan oil on the international market and further reducing world oil prices.
There is a whole set of measures that have undoubtedly already been analyzed in Washington. Some tools are already working, some are only planned, and some may already be involved in the negotiation process that has been announced.
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