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Asia Minute: Awkward triangle between India, Russia, US

Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, left, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov shake hands after a joint news conference following their talks in Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022. (Maxim Shipenkov/Pool Photo via AP)
Maxim Shipenkov/AP
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Pool EPA
Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, left, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov shake hands after a joint news conference following their talks in Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022. (Maxim Shipenkov/Pool Photo via AP)

Much of the country remains focused on domestic politics on this day after the election. But it’s also a busy period for international politics, including a key U.S. partner in the Indo-Pacific.

This is a delicate period when it comes to U.S. relations with India.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is heading to the country at the end of the week just as news comes that India is now buying most of its oil from Russia.

That’s a change from its usual top suppliers: Iraq and Saudi Arabia.

It’s also a contrast to much of the rest of the world.

The European Union is moving ahead with a Russian oil embargo to start early next month, while the Group of Seven major economies is working on a plan that would put a price cap on Russian oil exports.

Yellen told the Press Trust of India that India would benefit from a price cap.

India’s Foreign Minister was in Moscow Tuesday where he stressed that his country needs to look after its own interests.

He told a news conference “we have seen that the India-Russia relationship has worked to our advantage.”

India has not condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and is a longtime buyer of Russian military equipment.

A statement from the U.S. Treasury Department said Yellen’s visit “will highlight the strength of the United States’ partnership with India, which continues to deepen.”

On Friday, the Treasury Secretary will hold a series of meetings with government and business leaders, including what the Treasury Department calls “a fireside discussion with executives from major Indian companies and American companies operating in India.”

Bill Dorman has been the news director at Hawaiʻi Public Radio since 2011.
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