India's purchases of Russian oil have surged to record levels, while European countries continue importing refined petroleum products from Indian facilities processing Russian crude. New figures highlight the contradictions in Western energy sanctions, as governments attempt to restrict Moscow's oil revenues while confronting shortages and soaring fuel prices. For New Zealand, the developments raise a familiar question: when global energy security is threatened, do economic realities ultimately override political principles?
INR Report: Based on reporting by RT HERE, published 13 November 2026, citing research from the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA).
India's Russian Oil Purchases Surge
India has increased its imports of Russian crude oil to record levels, reinforcing its position as one of Moscow's most important energy customers despite continuing Western sanctions.
According to figures from the Helsinki-based Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air, cited by RT, India's Russian crude imports increased by 10 percent in October compared with September.
The increase was driven largely by the country's three biggest refineries, which substantially expanded their purchases.
India accounted for 37 percent of Russian crude exports during October, with purchases valued at approximately $6.41 billion.
Its total fossil fuel imports from Russia reached $7.07 billion, the highest monthly figure in CREA's dataset dating back to January 2022.
The figures demonstrate how significantly global energy trading relationships have changed since Western governments introduced restrictions targeting Russian oil exports.
Rather than disappearing from international markets, substantial volumes of Russian crude have been redirected towards countries willing to maintain commercial relationships with Moscow.
India has emerged as a major beneficiary of that realignment.
Europe Still Buys the Fuel
Perhaps the most politically revealing finding concerns the continued movement of refined petroleum products from India into European markets.
According to the report, ten shipments of fuel refined from Russian crude were delivered to European Union ports during October from India's enormous Jamnagar refinery.
The refinery is operated by Reliance Industries, controlled by Indian billionaire Mukesh Ambani.
European countries also purchased two shipments from Türkiye's STAR refinery, which had reportedly supplied seven such shipments during September.
The distinction between crude oil and refined petroleum products is central to understanding these transactions.
Russian crude can be purchased by a refinery outside the European Union, processed into diesel or other fuels, and subsequently sold into international markets.
The finished product is commercially distinct from the original crude, although its production may have involved Russian oil.
This creates a complicated situation for European sanctions policy.
Governments seeking to reduce Moscow's energy revenues may nevertheless purchase fuel from international refiners that continue sourcing Russian crude.
Whether individual shipments comply with applicable restrictions depends on the relevant sanctions rules, product origin requirements and transaction dates.
Nevertheless, the trading pattern raises questions about how effectively sanctions achieve their intended economic objectives.
The Sanctions Contradiction
European governments have repeatedly argued that restrictions on Russian energy exports are necessary to reduce the revenue available to Moscow during the Ukraine conflict.
Yet the latest figures illustrate the difficulty of removing a major energy producer from an interconnected global market.
Russia remains a substantial supplier of crude oil, while countries such as India possess the refining capacity to transform imported crude into products required by consumers around the world.
As a result, restricting direct purchases does not necessarily eliminate the underlying economic relationship.
Instead, trade may be redirected through additional countries and processing facilities.
This can increase transportation costs, complicate supply chains and create new commercial opportunities for intermediaries.
It can also make the ultimate origin of petroleum products more difficult for consumers to identify.
The issue is not simply whether Europe is purchasing Russian crude directly.
It is whether European demand for refined fuel indirectly sustains a market in which Russian oil remains commercially valuable.
The distinction matters when evaluating the effectiveness and credibility of energy sanctions.
Russia's Oil Revenues Continue
Despite the restrictions imposed by Western governments, Russian energy exports remain an important source of revenue.
CREA's figures place India among Moscow's largest customers, alongside China.
The European Union itself reportedly remained the third-largest purchaser of Russian fossil fuels, accounting for 11 percent of Russia's export revenues from its five leading buyers.
These figures illustrate the continued dependence of international energy markets on Russian supplies.
The European Union has attempted to reduce that dependence through sanctions, alternative suppliers and changes to its energy infrastructure.
However, energy systems cannot always be reconfigured quickly.
Refineries are designed to process particular grades of crude, and replacing established supply relationships can require substantial investment.
Transport routes, shipping capacity and the availability of alternative petroleum products also influence purchasing decisions.
Consequently, governments face a difficult balance between maintaining political pressure on Russia and ensuring that sufficient energy remains available to their economies.
India Puts Its Own Interests First
India has consistently defended its Russian oil purchases on the grounds of national energy security.
With a population exceeding 1.4 billion, the country requires enormous quantities of fuel to support transportation, manufacturing, agriculture and economic development.
New Delhi has argued that access to competitively priced energy is essential to maintaining economic stability.
Its position reflects a broader approach in which national economic interests take priority over demands from foreign governments to alter established trading relationships.
India has continued purchasing Russian energy despite Western price restrictions and pressure from Washington.
According to the RT report, US President Donald Trump waived steep tariffs associated with legislation targeting purchasers of Russian oil, citing national security considerations.
India had resisted the proposed measures, warning that they could damage bilateral relations.
The episode illustrates the limits of economic pressure when major trading partners have substantial strategic and commercial importance.
India is not simply a customer in the global oil market.
It is also a major refining centre and an increasingly important supplier of petroleum products to international consumers.
The Diesel Supply Squeeze
The growth in India's Russian crude purchases comes amid pressure on global diesel supplies.
According to figures attributed in the report to the International Energy Agency and the Energy Institute, global diesel and gas oil availability declined by approximately 1.7 million barrels per day during the third quarter compared with the previous year.
Wholesale diesel prices reportedly exceeded $200 per barrel in September, reaching approximately $220 in European and American markets.
These are reported wholesale product prices, not ordinary crude oil prices, and the distinction is important.
Diesel is essential to commercial transportation, agriculture, construction, shipping and industrial activity.
When diesel prices rise sharply, the consequences extend far beyond motorists.
Higher freight costs can affect food distribution, building materials, manufacturing inputs and the final prices paid by consumers.
Fuel shortages can also disrupt essential supply chains.
The pressure creates strong commercial incentives for refiners capable of producing large quantities of diesel from available crude supplies.
India's refining industry is particularly well positioned to respond.
Reliance Becomes a Major Supplier
Reliance Industries' Jamnagar complex has emerged as a significant participant in the changing international energy market.
The facility is capable of processing crude grades that yield substantial volumes of diesel and other refined products.
According to the report, Jamnagar increased its Russian crude purchases by 22 percent during October.
That made it the largest importer of seaborne Russian crude for the period.
The refinery's importance has also attracted attention from Washington.
RT reports that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio visited Jamnagar during October in an effort to encourage Reliance to increase diesel production for international markets.
The objective was reportedly to help moderate elevated fuel prices.
The circumstances underline the complexity of American energy policy.
Washington has sought to restrict Russian oil revenues while also encouraging greater production of refined fuels in markets where Russian crude remains an important feedstock.
The two objectives are not necessarily legally incompatible, but they can produce politically uncomfortable outcomes.
Oil Prices Challenge Sanctions
Another significant finding concerns the gap between Western price restrictions and the reported market value of Russian crude.
According to the article, the European Union's Russian oil price cap stood at $44.10 per barrel.
Yet Russian Urals crude reportedly traded at approximately $101.70 per barrel during October, an increase of 13 percent from the previous month.
The figures suggest that market prices remained substantially above the level targeted by the price-cap mechanism.
However, the market price alone does not establish whether particular transactions violated sanctions.
Price caps generally operate through restrictions on specified services and transactions rather than imposing a universal price on every barrel sold worldwide.
The effectiveness of such measures therefore depends on enforcement, shipping arrangements, insurance services and the availability of alternative trading networks.
The broader lesson is that sanctions targeting a globally traded commodity can be difficult to enforce comprehensively.
Energy Security Versus Politics
The developments reveal a fundamental tension between foreign policy objectives and economic necessity.
European governments want to reduce Russia's capacity to finance its military operations.
At the same time, European industries and consumers require reliable supplies of diesel, gas and other energy products.
India, meanwhile, is pursuing affordable crude supplies and expanding its role as an international refining centre.
Russia continues selling energy to countries willing to purchase it.
These competing interests have created a complex trading environment in which political restrictions and commercial relationships frequently overlap.
For critics of Western sanctions, the situation illustrates an apparent contradiction between public declarations and economic behaviour.
Supporters of the restrictions argue that sanctions can still increase Russia's trading costs and reduce revenue opportunities even when they do not eliminate exports entirely.
Both arguments require examination against measurable economic outcomes.
The relevant questions are how much revenue sanctions actually prevent Russia from receiving, what additional costs they impose on importing countries, and whether the strategic benefits justify those costs.
Does This Affect New Zealand?
New Zealand is particularly exposed to international fuel-market disruption because it relies on imported refined petroleum products.
Following the closure of the Marsden Point refinery in 2022, the country became dependent on overseas refineries for its petrol, diesel and aviation fuel supplies.
This means developments in international refining capacity, shipping availability and wholesale fuel prices can have direct consequences for New Zealand.
A sustained increase in diesel prices can raise costs for freight operators, farmers, construction companies and businesses throughout the supply chain.
Those costs may eventually be passed on to households through higher prices for food, transport and other essential goods.
New Zealand also competes with other importing countries for access to refined petroleum products.
When global supplies tighten, purchasing power and established commercial relationships become increasingly important.
India's growing refining role therefore matters even though New Zealand is geographically distant from the political disputes surrounding Russian oil.
The wider international market determines the price and availability of the fuel on which much of the New Zealand economy depends.
Will This Make New Zealand Stronger?
The latest energy figures reinforce the importance of national fuel security.
New Zealand cannot control global oil prices or the geopolitical decisions of major energy producers.
It can, however, examine its own exposure to international supply disruptions and determine whether existing reserves, import arrangements and infrastructure provide sufficient resilience.
The closure of domestic refining capacity has made the country more dependent on overseas production and shipping networks.
That dependence becomes particularly significant during periods of conflict, sanctions or international supply shortages.
A comprehensive energy-security strategy should consider the reliability of fuel imports, domestic storage capacity, emergency reserves and the economic consequences of prolonged disruption.
It should also distinguish between political commitments made internationally and the practical requirements of maintaining a functioning domestic economy.
Will this make New Zealand stronger?
Not if New Zealand remains vulnerable to every major disruption in international fuel markets.
Greater resilience requires long-term planning, transparent assessment of supply risks and policies that place national economic security at the centre of decision-making.
The Reality Behind the Rhetoric
India's record Russian oil purchases demonstrate that international energy markets continue to operate according to commercial necessity, even when governments seek to reshape them through sanctions.
Europe's purchases of refined petroleum products from facilities processing Russian crude expose the difficulty of separating political objectives from the realities of global supply.
The resulting trading relationships are complex, and individual transactions cannot automatically be characterised as sanctions violations.
Nevertheless, the figures raise legitimate questions about the consistency and effectiveness of Western energy policy.
For New Zealand, the most important lesson is that fuel security cannot be taken for granted.
When energy becomes scarce, national economic interests can rapidly take precedence over political declarations.
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