India Reportedly Eyes Cut in Russian Crude Over US Sanctions Concerns

India is reportedly eyeing a cut in Russian crude imports after the US’s recently introduced new sanctions on Russian oil purchases.The sanctions, named after late US lawmaker Lindsey Graham, would allow Washington to impose a 100% tariff on imports from nations buying Russian oil.JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official.Bloomberg reported Tuesday that India – the world’s third-largest crude buyer that imports 40% of its crude from Russia – is eyeing a cut in deliveries, potentially starting in November.The outlet said India’s September Russian crude imports averaged about 1.9 million barrels a day, citing data from commercial analytics platform Kpler. It noted that the volume is the lowest since April.Those involved in the discussions reportedly told Bloomberg that top refineries in India are already seeking alternatives for fear of US tariffs, with plans to bring Russian crude imports down to 20-30%.Those sources added that New Delhi would continue to negotiate with Washington over the sanctions and tariffs, while watching for similar measures against other Russian crude purchasers such as China.China was the top importer of Russian crude in August, according to a report by the Center for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), which gave Moscow total revenue of €8.4 billion ($9.7 billion).India follows at €4.8 billion ($5.5 billion), followed by NATO member Turkey at €1.5 billion ($1.7 billion). The EU was the fourth-largest buyer of Russian fossil fuels, at €1.2 billion ($1.4 billion). Other Topics of Interest Moldova Seeks Energy, Water Emergency Over Critically Low Dnister Levels Authorities warn of potential shortages as the country remains reliant on imported energy, while the river’s decline has been compounded by a Russian strike on a Ukrainian hydropower facility. The US House of Representatives passed the latest sanctions bill on Sept. 17, and US President Donald Trump signed it a day later.Trump imposed similarly structured 50% tariffs on India in August 2025, but later dropped them to 18% in February, claiming New Delhi had “agreed to stop buying Russian oil, and to buy much more from the United States and, potentially, Venezuela,” according to CNBC.Kpler data cited by Bloomberg shows Indian imports of Russian crude bounced from an average of 1 million barrels per day that month to 2 million barrels in March, before peaking at 2.83 million barrels daily in July.India’s gasoline supplies to RussiaIndia has also been a major supplier of gasoline to Russia amid the latter’s fuel crisis, where Russian crude is sold back as gasoline.The same CREA report also notes Russia’s unprecedented seaborne energy product imports amid a widening fuel crisis, with Russia importing 172,000 tonnes of oil products by sea – three times the total imports for the whole of 2025 in just one month.The spike was triggered by regular Ukrainian strikes against its refineries that hampered Moscow’s ability to process its own crude.The CREA added that 70% of those imports came from India, 94% of which were gasoline.Considering Russia’s state-owned Rosneft holds a 49.13% stake in Nayara Energy, which refines some of that Russian crude before shipping the fuel back to Russia, Moscow is essentially paying New Delhi to help process crude it cannot refine domestically amid the ongoing automobile fuel crisis. Leo Chiu is a journalist and editor based in Eastern Europe since 2015. He has witnessed two presidential elections in Belarus and traveled widely to conflict zones and contested regions, producing reporting that bridges the gap between major developments and local realities.