Chris Wright says US doesn't want to punish India, but end Russia’s war

US Energy Secretary Chris Wright has said that his country does not want to punish India, but wants to end Russia’s war in Ukraine. Wright said that due to the sanctions, Russia has to sell its oil at a discounted rate, and India buys it because it is cheaper. He also accused India of looking “the other way” after making a tradeoff to buy cheaper Russian oil.

Wright further stated that the US' stance is that any country can buy oil from any other country in the world, but not from Russia, adding that the US has oil to sell and so do other countries. He clarified that the US wants to grow its relationship with India, especially in the energy sector.

His comments come at a time when ties between India and the US have come under strain due to US President Donald Trump’s decision to impose a cumulative 50 per cent tariff on Indian goods that includes the earlier 25 per cent reciprocal tariff and 25 per cent retaliatory tariff for India’s purchase of Russian oil.

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‘Want to grow India-US ties’

"We wish India would work with us to buy (oil). You can buy oil from every nation on earth, except Russian oil. That's our position. America has oil to sell, so does everybody else. We don't want to punish India. We want to end the war, and we want to grow our relations with India,” said Wright as quoted by ANI.

"There are lots of oil exporters in the world. India doesn't need to buy Russian oil. India buys Russian oil because it is cheaper. Nobody wants to buy Russian oil; they have to sell it at a discount. India has decided to make the trade-off to buy cheaper oil and look the other way, which is giving money to a guy who's murdering thousands of people every week," he added.

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On boosting energy trade with India

Describing India as an “awesome ally of the United States”, Wright said that the US looks forward to more energy trade and interactions with India.

“Then India is caught up in the middle of another issue. President Trump’s greatest passion is peace in the world. When I talk to him, it does not matter what the topic is, peace comes up,” said Wright.

The Trump administration official said that the key point of friction between India and the US was that sanctioned Russian oil goes to China, India and Turkey, adding that it helps Russia in funding its war in Ukraine.

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'Reason behind friction'

“The Russian war in Ukraine is brutal, and we want to see it come to an end. But where does sanctioned Russian oil go today? It goes to China, India, and it goes to Turkey, and it helps Russia fund that war. The friction is on that issue,” said Wright.

“We want to bring that war to an end. I believe the Indians want to bring that war to an end. We want to expand our energy cooperation with India in natural gas, in coal, in nuclear power, in clean cooking fuel, in liquid petroleum gas. India has been a star in that area. So, we want nothing but more trade and energy cooperation with India,” he added.