Exclusive-India Can Buy As Much Russian Oil As It Wants, Outside Price Cap, Yellen Says – By David Lawder (IB Times) / Nov 11, 2022
The United States is happy for India to continue buying as much Russian oil as it wants, including at prices above a G7-imposed price cap mechanism, if it steers clear of Western insurance, finance and maritime services bound by the cap, U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Friday.
The cap would still drive global oil prices lower while curbing Russia’s revenues, Yellen said in an interview with Reuters on the sidelines of a conference on deepening U.S.-Indian economic ties. Russia will not be able to sell as much oil as it does now once the European Union halts imports without resorting to the capped price or significant discounts from current prices, Yellen added.
“Russia is going to find it very difficult to continue shipping as much oil as they have done when the EU stops buying Russian oil,” Yellen said. “They’re going to be heavily in search of buyers. And many buyers are reliant on Western services.”
India is now Russia’s largest oil customer other than China.
