US President Donald Trump on Saturday said the decision to temporarily allow India to purchase Russian oil is aimed at easing pressure on global energy markets as tensions continue to disrupt supply routes in West Asia and the Gulf.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One, the US president responded to an announcement by Scott Bessent regarding a 30-day waiver that permits Indian refiners to buy certain shipments of Russian crude already at sea.
The move comes amid growing concerns about potential disruptions to global oil supplies due to security tensions near the Strait of Hormuz.
Commenting on whether additional steps could be taken to stabilise markets, Trump said, “If there were some, I would do it just to take a little of the pressure off.”
He added that global supply remained strong despite the ongoing geopolitical tensions. “I think that the oil pressure – there’s a lot of oil. We’ve got a lot of oil. Our country has a tremendous amount, and we have, there’s a lot of oil out there. That’ll get healed very quickly,” the Republican leader said.
The waiver, announced by the US Treasury Department, allows India to import Russian oil shipments that were already en route but became stranded following a fresh round of US sanctions.
Officials said the measure would remain in place for 30 days and is intended to prevent sudden shortages in global markets.
Explaining the decision, Bessent said Washington had earlier asked India to halt purchases of sanctioned Russian crude but had now granted temporary flexibility because of the evolving security situation in the region.
“The Indians have been very good actors. We had asked them to stop buying sanctioned Russian oil this fall. They did. They were going to substitute it with US oil. But to ease the temporary gap of oil around the world, we have given them permission to accept Russian oil,” he said during an interview with Fox Business earlier this week.
US officials emphasised that the waiver is limited in scope and is not intended to change the broader policy towards Moscow.
Chris Wright described the move as part of short-term steps aimed at keeping global prices stable and ensuring supply continuity.
“There’s a bunch of floating barrels just sitting there. We’ve reached out to our friends in India and said, ‘Buy that oil. Bring it into your refineries.’” he said.
Wright further clarified that the decision is temporary and designed to prevent market disruptions.
“We have implemented short-term measures to help keep oil prices down. We are allowing our friends in India to take oil that is already on ships, refine it, and move those barrels into the market quickly. A practical way to get supply flowing and ease pressure,” he stressed.
Bessent had also underlined the importance of the strategic partnership between Washington and New Delhi.
“India is an essential partner of the United States” and “this stop-gap measure will alleviate pressure caused by Iran’s attempt to take global energy hostage,” he said.
“To enable oil to keep flowing into the global market, the US is issuing a 30-day waiver to allow Indian refiners to purchase Russian oil.”
Indian officials, however, maintained that the country does not rely on external approval to purchase crude.
