Ukraine Slams India For Buying Oil From Putin: 'If You Benefit From Our Suffering...'

Ukraine‘s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba slammed India for buying cheap oil from Russia amid Western sanctions over Vladimir Putin's war in Kyiv. 

What Happened: Kuleba, in an interview with NDTV, called it "morally inappropriate" for India to buy Russian oil when the other Ukrainian allies, including the U.S. and Europe, have imposed sanctions on it. 

See Also: Who Are The Winners And Losers Of G7 Price Cap On Russian Oil?

"The opportunity for India to buy Russian oil at a cheap price comes from the fact that Ukrainians are suffering from Russian aggression and dying every day," Kuleba said.

India’s Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar said in a statement earlier this week that since the onset of the Russia-Ukraine war, the European Union had imported more fossil fuel from Putin's nation than the next 10 countries combined.

Responding to Jaishankar’s comments, Kuleba said ”If you benefit because of our suffering, it would be good to see more of your help addressed to us.”

”It is not enough to point fingers at the European Union and say, Oh, they are doing the same thing,” Kuleba added. 

India’s Ministry of External Affairs did not immediately respond to Benzinga‘s request for comment.

Recent data by the energy cargo tracker Vortexa showed Russia became the top oil supplier to India for the second month in November, edging past the traditionally dominant suppliers, Saudi Arabia and Iraq. As low prices spurred demand from one of the world's largest oil consumers and importers, Moscow supplied over 909,400 barrels per day of crude to India.

Meanwhile, Kuleba also acknowledged that India could play a key role in ending the Russia-Ukraine war, adding that New Delhi ​​needs to be direct in referring to the situation in Kyiv.

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