RECENTLY a discussion on Deutsche Welle (DW) regarding continuing Indian import of Russian oil despite Western sanctions gave an insight as to how India can get away with such a huge defiance of the West-driven sanctions and still thrive, while many other nations have to suffer for such a ‘sin’.

The analyst invited to the discussion was Biresh Bannerji, a regular anchor at the channel. He argued that the Indian import of Russian oil was beneficial to the rest of the world. According to him, Europe was getting petroleum, oil and lubricant (POL) products from India, which do not fall under sanctions, at prices lower than in the international market.

The Indian government raised its oil import from Russia, cutting the same from countries, like Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Nigeria and others, ensuring more oil for the Western world, resultantly keeping the prices of oil in the world market stable.

We may agree or disagree with the arguments, but it was an effective presentation of the Indian point of view. Besides, it was a massive insight for the people about how geopolitics works.

Obviously, such projections help a lot in creating goodwill for India among Western audiences and governments. Will Pakistan government, intelligentsia and media be ever smart to come up with such novel ideas to counter Western concerns/questions regarding the gas pipeline from Iran?

Amjad Hussain
Attock

Published in Dawn, April 23rd, 2024