In recent weeks, Washington’s trade circles have revived claims that India is “Funding Russia’s War” in Ukraine by purchasing discounted Russian oil. Most vocal among them has been Peter Navarro, a senior trade advisor, who has suggested that New Delhi’s energy policy undermines Western sanctions and prolongs the conflict. Meanwhile he also criticised India’s stance as arrogant and calling on the country to act more responsibly as the world’s largest democracy. “The Indians are so arrogant about this. They say, ‘We can buy oil from whoever we want.’ India, you’re the biggest democracy in the world. Act like one!”

Deconstructing the West’s Narrative on the Ukraine War

This framing is deeply misleading. India’s oil purchases are not about financing wars but about securing affordable energy for 1.4 billion people. By sourcing crude at discounted rates, India insulates its economy from global price volatility, keeps inflation in check, and provides stability in the energy market. Ironically, much of this crude—once refined in Indian facilities—makes its way back to Europe as diesel and jet fuel. If the US and the EU truly wished to sever Russian energy flows, they would also stop importing these refined products and also stop all kinds of imports from Russia. To single out India while ignoring Western dependence on Russian energy reeks of hypocrisy.
President Trump, now in his second term, has been criticized for not ending the war “within 24 hours” as he once declared on the campaign trail. Conflicts driven by territorial disputes and deep-rooted geopolitical ambitions cannot be resolved by slogans alone. What the Trump administration has done is reframe negotiations, pressuring both Russia and Ukraine toward dialogue while simultaneously reminding NATO allies of their responsibility to share the security burden. A war that the US-NATO and Europe has failed to prevent cannot be pinned to be blamed on India’s oil policy.
The deeper hypocrisy lies in the West’s economic and industrial interests. While professing moral outrage at Russia, Western defense corporations—from Lockheed Martin to Rheinmetall—have seen record profits. The war has become the biggest driver of NATO’s rearmament push in decades. The uncomfortable truth is that for many in the transatlantic establishment, peace is less profitable than conflict.
Calls that “stopping the war would solve everything” ignore the fact that it was Western policy—NATO’s steady eastward expansion and Europe’s overdependence on Russian energy—that created this fragile situation. Today, the West urges sacrifice from others while keeping loopholes open to protect its own economies. India is scapegoated not because it prolongs war, but because it refuses to follow a sanctions regime it never consented to.
If the US-NATO and Europe truly sought peace, they would prioritize genuine negotiations over military escalation, close their own backdoors to Russian energy, and stop using the Ukraine conflict as a subsidy engine for their military-industrial complex. Until then, blaming India is nothing more than a convenient distraction.

Oil Not For War-But For Development

Recent claims from Washington that New Delhi is “funding the Ukraine war” by purchasing Russian oil are not only misleading, but they also betray a selective memory of how global energy markets actually work. As the world’s largest democracy and the oldest civilization, India has every right to pursue its own path to energy security, economic growth, and geopolitical balance.
India is the world’s third-largest energy consumer, yet it imports over 85% of its crude oil. Unlike the US, which enjoys energy self-sufficiency, India must secure stable and affordable energy supplies for its 1.4 billion citizens. Access to affordable energy is not a luxury—it is a developmental necessity. To suggest that India should jeopardize its own economic stability in order to align with Western preferences is a misnomer.
Every dollar saved on discounted crude allows India to invest more in healthcare, education, infrastructure, and digital inclusion. These are not abstract concerns—they affect the daily lives of ordinary Indians. To demand that India pay higher prices for oil in order to send a symbolic message to Moscow is effectively to ask India to tax its poorest citizens for the sake of geopolitical theater.
India as an Energy Stabilizer. Russian crude that India buys is refined into diesel, jet fuel, and petrol that is then re-exported to Europe. Far from undermining Western sanctions, India’s role has helped stabilize global energy markets, prevent shortages, and keep prices from spiraling out of control. The truth is that India is cushioning the very economies that now point fingers at it.

Respect Between Democracies

As the world’s oldest and largest democracies, the US and India should build their partnership on mutual respect, not lectures. True democratic values include sovereignty, equality among nations, and the right to choose one’s own developmental priorities. India is not funding war—it is fueling development, stability, and multipolar cooperation in a world too often divided by rigid blocs.
US and Trump should recognize that India’s actions are helping keep global energy markets stable and affordable—a service that benefits East and West alike. In an increasingly multipolar world, accusations will divide, but respect and partnership will build a more inclusive and peaceful global order.
Trump pledged to end Russia’s invasion on his first day back in office, but that has failed to materialize. Despite separate face-to-face meetings with Putin and Ukrainian President Zelensky, Trump has still been unable to secure a sit-down between the two or a halt to the fighting.
India’s foreign policy has long been guided by the principle of strategic autonomy consistently taken a non-aligned and independent foreign policy stance. India has maintained channels with both Russia and Ukraine while consistently advocating for dialogue and diplomacy. To characterize India’s approach as opportunistic or irresponsible is to ignore its record of careful neutrality and responsible global engagement. Lecturing India undermines the spirit of multipolar cooperation and ignores the principle that no democracy should dictate to another.
As the world’s largest democracy, India believes in dialogue, diplomacy, and peace, not bloc politics. India’s Prime minister Modi has maintaining close ties with Russia, reflecting a balanced approach and often advised President Putin this is an “Era of No War.” As the two largest and oldest democracies, India and the US must respect value for sovereignty and equality.

Email:---------------------rcpat311@gmail.com