WASHINGTON, DC — In the latest salvo from the US, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on August 18, once again accused India of exploiting Western sanctions on Russia by reselling discounted crude oil for profit, calling the practice “arbitrage” and warning it was unacceptable.

“They are just profiteering. They are reselling,” Bessent told CNBC’s Squawk Box. “This is what I would call the Indian arbitrage — buying cheap Russian oil, reselling it as product.”

He claimed the trade has generated “$16 billion in excess profits — some of the richest families in India.”  Mukesh Ambani and his Reliance companies are known beneficiaries.

Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, India’s imports of Russian crude have surged from negligible levels to 1.5 million barrels per day in July, according to data from Kpler, CNBC said. Much of the crude is refined into gasoline and diesel, which analysts say is then exported to markets that have sanctioned Moscow, it reported.

China remains Russia’s second-largest customer, importing about 1 million barrels per day. Asked why Beijing was not facing similar penalties, Bessent suggested China’s role was viewed differently because it had been a major Russian buyer before the war.

Some analysts say that India’s purchase surge was at the behest of Western nations.

Earlier this month, President Donald Trump ordered an extra 25% tariff on Indian exports to the U.S. to punish New Delhi for its oil purchases.

@India-West News Desk