Moscow [Russia], February 5 (ANI): Russian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Maria Vladimirovna Zakharova said there was no reason to believe that India would reconsider its approach to energy cooperation with Russia, RT News reported.
“No reason to believe India has reconsidered its approach to energy cooperation with Russia,” Zakharova said, according to RT News. “The trade in resources is beneficial for both sides and contributes to maintaining stability in the international energy market,” she added.
Kremlin Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Russia is not the only supplier of oil and petroleum products to India. “We, along with all other international energy experts, are well aware that Russia is not the only supplier of oil and petroleum products to India. India has always purchased these products from other countries. Therefore, we see nothing new here,” Peskov said.
Meanwhile, Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal said the government’s foremost priority is ensuring energy security for India’s population. “I wish to clarify once again, as the government has stated publicly on several occasions, that ensuring the energy security of 1.4 billion Indians is the supreme priority of the government. Diversifying our energy sourcing in keeping with objective market conditions and evolving international dynamics is at the core of our strategy to ensure this. All of India’s actions are taken with this in mind,” he said, urging that the issue be viewed in proper perspective.
These remarks come as External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar is in the United States to attend the Critical Minerals Ministerial hosted by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Jaishankar said the two sides reviewed their bilateral cooperation during his meetings with the US Secretary, with discussions covering the Indo-Pacific, West Asia, and Ukraine.
“We did a fairly detailed review of our bilateral cooperation. It’s natural when foreign ministers meet that you discuss the diplomatic agenda and the calendar of what we expect to do together during the year,” Jaishankar said. He added that the discussions included developments in the Indo-Pacific, West Asia, the Middle East, Gaza, and the Ukraine conflict, describing the exchange as open and forthcoming.
At the Critical Minerals Ministerial, the External Affairs Minister also underlined India’s support for the FORGE (Forum on Resource, Geostrategic Engagement) initiative.
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