NEW DELHI: Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov has said that Russia has developed a system to engage in trade in national currencies with countries like India to bypass the dollar.
Lavrov was on a two-day visit to India where he met External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
"As regards using rupee and ruble in our financial trade dealings, I would recall many years ago we started moving in our relations with India, China and other countries using the dollar and euro to more use of national currencies," said Lavrov, adding that the rupee-ruble payment system is ongoing for many years and India could use it to trade oil, military hardware and other goods. He also said that Russia would be ready to supply India any goods, as they already had good relations with the ministries of trade and finance of India.
"We will be able to bypass the artificial impediments which illegal and unilateral sanctions of the West have created," Lavrov added.
Lavrov said Russia's central bank had several years ago established a system for the communication of financial information and India had a similar system.
"It is absolutely clear that more and more transactions would be done through this system using national currencies, bypassing dollar, euro and other currencies," he said.
EAM Dr Jaishankar said that today's meeting had taken place in a difficult international environment, the first since Russia invaded Ukraine.
"India has always been in favour of resolving differences and disputes through dialogue and diplomacy," Dr Jaishankar added.
On the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Lavrov appreciated India's stance and said India is taking the entirety of the situation into account and not just in a one-sided way. India has called for an immediate ceasefire but abstained from all UNSC resolutions
condemning Russian aggression.
India is committed to buying 6 billion tonnes of crude from Russia at a discount of $20 per barrel from public sector undertakings like IOCL and negotiations are on for an additional 4 million tonnes by the private sector companies.
Meanwhile, India is being pressurised to rethink on expanding its trade ties with Russia, though leeway has been given to import oil.
"Washington would not set any red line for India on its energy imports from Russia but did not want to see a rapid acceleration in purchases," said US Deputy National Security Adviser for International Economics, Daleep Singh, on his visit to India yesterday.
British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, who was in Delhi yesterday, also said that Britain respected India's decision to buy discounted Russian oil, while advocating stringent sanctions on Russia relating to the ports, gold and energy sectors.