India won't buy from sanctioned Russian Arctic LNG 2 project, Indian oil secretary says

India will not purchase liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Russia's Arctic LNG 2 project, which has been sanctioned by Western countries, Indian Oil Secretary Pankaj Jain said on Sept.

27, Reuters reported. Arctic LNG 2, owned by Russia's Novatek, aims to produce nearly 20 million metric tons of LNG per year, primarily for Asian markets, potentially generating billions of dollars in revenue. The project was envisioned as Russia's largest LNG plant and a key part of its plan to become the world's leading LNG producer.

Earlier this year, the U.K., along with the U.S. and the European Union, sanctioned Arctic LNG 2. "We will not buy (from) Arctic LNG 2. We are not buying any sanctioned commodity.

Something which has broad-based sanctions, we are not touching it," Jain said. India has maintained close economic and diplomatic ties with Moscow since February 2022, with bilateral trade reaching a record high in 2023. India overtook China as the world's largest importer of Russian oil in July as Chinese refiners bought less due to lower profit margins from fuel production, Reuters reported on Aug.

22, citing a comparison of import data. At the same time, India has been developing its relationship with Ukraine, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi visiting Kyiv in August, the first time an Indian prime minister set foot in Ukraine since diplomatic relations were established over 30 years ago. Modi's visit to Ukraine came just weeks after his trip to Moscow, where he met with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The visit included a widely criticized hug between the two leaders on July 8, hours after Russia bombed the Okhmatdyt children's hospital in Kyiv.

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