The United States has issued a 30‑day waiver allowing Indian refiners to purchase Russian oil, a move framed as a temporary measure to keep crude flowing into global markets amid soaring energy‑security fears triggered by the widening war involving Iran and the US‑led coalition.

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent announced the exemption on Friday, stressing that it is aimed at preventing abrupt supply crunches as Middle East conflict disrupts key shipping lanes such as the Strait of Hormuz, through which a large share of global oil exports passes.

Under the waiver, India is permitted to buy Russian crude that is already stranded at sea rather than authorising broad new purchases of sanctioned cargoes, which Washington says limits the windfall to the Russian government. Bessent described the step as a “deliberate short‑term measure” and a “stopgap” to ease the strain created by what he called Iran’s efforts to hold global energy supplies “hostage” through attacks on maritime routes and regional infrastructure.

The exemption is explicitly time‑bound, lasting one month, and Washington has signalled that New Delhi is expected to increase energy imports from the United States in the medium term to offset any perceived benefit to Moscow.

India, heavily reliant on seaborne crude, has been facing a narrowing safety margin in inventories, with its stockpiles reportedly covering only about 25 days of consumption under normal conditions.

Around 40 per cent of India’s oil imports transit the Strait of Hormuz, making the country particularly vulnerable to interruptions caused by the Iran‑led escalation and accompanying naval strikes and mine‑laying activities in the Persian Gulf.

With several Russian‑origin cargoes already loitering near Indian waters, Indian refiners have begun negotiating prompt purchases of millions of barrels, including deals involving state‑owned firms such as Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) and Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL).

Before the latest waiver, Washington had been pressing New Delhi to scale back its dependence on Russian oil after Moscow’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, successfully pushing India’s imports to their lowest levels in several years by early 2026.

That de‑escalation had helped India avoid a steep 25 per cent US tariff and secured room for a preliminary trade‑deal framework with Washington, but the sudden spike in Middle East tensions has forced a rapid recalibration.

Sources close to the negotiations told international wire services that India specifically requested the green‑light from Donald Trump’s administration to acquire Russian crude as a hedge against supply shocks, a request that was framed in Washington as compatible with broader Western sanctions so long as it targeted stranded volumes.

In parallel with this energy‑related move, the Israeli military has launched a fresh wave of airstrikes on the Dahiya neighbourhood in the southern suburbs of Beirut, underscoring the fragility of the Middle East front and the risk of wider regional conflagration.

Civilian areas across several cities have come under fire, stoking fears of a deepening humanitarian crisis and further tightening global energy markets as insurers and shipping firms reassess risk premiums for voyages through the Red Sea and Gulf.

The convergence of sharp military escalations and temporary financial‑system waivers illustrates how tightly energy security, sanctions policy, and great‑power diplomacy are now intertwined in the current geopolitical crisis.

ANI