Indian Envoy Hits Back at West, Says ‘Can’t Switch Off Economy’ Over Russian Oil Purchases

Indian High Commissioner to the UK, Vikram Doraiswami, has firmly defended India’s continued oil imports from Russia, rejecting Western criticism as hypocritical. Speaking to Times Radio, Doraiswami highlighted that several European nations continue to buy energy and rare earths from Russia while expecting India to stop. He emphasized that India cannot “switch off its economy,” given its 80% energy import dependence. Doraiswami also cited India’s long-standing defence ties with Russia, developed at a time when Western nations refused to sell weapons to India. He reiterated India’s balanced stance on the Russia-Ukraine conflict, pointing to PM Modi’s repeated calls for peace and dialogue.#vikramdoraiswami #indiarussia #russianoil #energypolicy #indiauk #foreignpolicy #modiputin #russiaukrainewar #indiandiplomacy #defenceties