India and Russia have been unable to agree on an oil trade in rupees after months of negotiations. This is reported by Reuters, citing sources in the Indian government. Most transactions between countries are still made in dollars, despite the fact that in his message to the Federal Assembly, Vladimir Putin said that Russia would work to form a settlement system independent of the dollar and other Western currencies.
Agency sources said that the Indian authorities could not convince the Russian side to use the rupee, because it is unprofitable for Russia to accumulate this currency. Russia insisted on paying for its oil in yuan or other currencies, one of the sources said.
India and China have become key buyers of oil from Russia after most Western countries abandoned it. RF sells it to these countries at a big discount .
In April, it became known that the State Bank of India and the Bank of Baroda of India were telling local refiners that they would not be able to process payments for Russian oil purchased at a price exceeding $60.
In January 2023, it was reported that the Indian authorities were ready to support the price ceiling for Russian oil, which was introduced by a coalition of Western countries, if necessary.