Steep American tariffs on India and Western sanctions on Russia won't have any significant impact on the India-Russia energy partnership, Dr Mamdouh G. Salameh, an international oil economist and a global energy expert, has said.
"I totally agree with the Kremlin's spokesman Dmitry Peskov that Russia has very deep experience in selling its oil even under the most atrocious Western sanctions. The proof is that Western sanctions have failed miserably to make even a small dent on both Russia's economy and its oil and gas exports, with Russian exports at the highest level still reaching the four corners of the Earth," Salameh told Sputnik India.
Moreover, US tariffs against India won't have any impact on the India-Russia energy partnership because India will continue to import Russian crude no matter what the US says or does. India's decision is dictated by its national interest, the energy pundit added.
The India-Russian partnership is underpinned by trust, mutual benefits and huge gratitude by India towards Russia, which has always stood solidly behind India and aided its struggle for independence since the days of the USSR, he stressed.
Salameh's comments came amid growing US pressure on India to do away with Russian oil, which Washington claims is fueling Moscow's military campaign in Ukraine.
Last month, the US sanctioned Russian oil majors Rosneft and Lukoil, in an attempt to put pressure on Indian refiners to stop their crude imports from these firms.
However, global trade intelligence firm Kpler, which tracks real-time data of oil shipments, said in a report in November that these sanctions will not have any long-term impact on India's crude imports from Russia.