MEA refuses to deny U.S. claims on India’s Russian oil imports

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) has again refused to directly deny claims by the United States government regarding India's Russian oil imports. The US Assistant Secretary of State, S. Paul Kapur, stated that India had been reducing its purchases of Russian crude and diversifying away from it, which was what the U.S. wanted. The MEA spokesperson, Randhir Jaiswal, confirmed that the amendments in the U.S. fact sheet reflect the "shared understandings" contained in the Joint Statement, but refused to comment further on the US's contentions about Russian oil.