New Delhi, Dec 11 (IANS): Russia is said to have offered to help India overcome the oil price cap, which has been imposed by Western nations on the world's largest country.
"In order not to depend on the ban on insurance services and tanker chartering in the European Union and Britain, Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Alexander Novak has offered India cooperation on leasing and building large-capacity ships," reports quoting the Russian embassy in New Delhi said.
Novak met Indian Ambassador to Moscow Pavan Kapoor on Friday, as per the statement.
"In the first eight months of 2022, Russian oil exports to India grew to 16.35 million tonnes in the summer, Russia ranked second in terms of oil shipments to India," it added.
The G7 nations, the European Union(EU) and Australia last week agreed to a $60 per barrel price cap on Russian seaborne crude oil, as part of its sanctions on Russia, owing to its invasion of Ukraine.
Western nations have not warmed up to India's stance of continuing to buy oil from Russia despite its war with Ukraine.
India, on its part, has made it clear that it will continue to buy crude oil from any country, which offers it a good deal.
External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar had echoed these sentiments in Parliament on December 7, saying that the government has not asked oil marketing companies to buy Russian crude, however it is a sensible policy, keeping in mind the interest of people.