EU’s Borrell urges bloc to crack down on imports of Indian fuels made with Russian oil

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said he will raise the issue with foreign minister of India, which has emerged in the past year as a top buyer of Russian oil

He added the bloc could target buyers of Indian refined fuels which it believes are derived from Russian crude

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EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell. Photo: EPA-EFE

Published: 5:43pm, 16 May 2023

The European Union should crack down on India reselling Russian oil into Europe as refined fuel, including diesel, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said in an interview with the Financial Times.

India has emerged in the past year as a top buyer of Russian oil following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022. Access to cheap Russian crude has boosted output and profits at Indian refineries, enabling them to export refined products competitively to Europe and take a bigger market share.

Borrell told the newspaper he will raise the issue with India’s foreign minister, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, when they meet on Tuesday.

“If diesel or petrol is entering Europe … coming from India and being produced with Russian oil, that is certainly a circumvention of sanctions and member states have to take measures,” the EU’s chief diplomat said.

“That India buys Russian oil, it’s normal … But if they use that in order to be a centre where Russian oil is being refined and by-products are being sold to us … we have to act,” Borrell said.

Indian refiners, which rarely bought Russian oil previously due to high transport costs, imported 970,000-981,000 bpd of it in fiscal 2022/23 (April-March), accounting for more than a fifth of the country’s overall fuel imports.