United States Energy Secretary Chris Wright on Wednesday expressed admiration for India and emphasised Washington’s eagerness to expand energy cooperation with New Delhi across sectors including natural gas, coal, nuclear power, and clean cooking fuels.
“I am a huge fan of India. We love India. We look forward to more energy trade, more interactions back and forth with India,” Wright said at a press conference at the New York Foreign Press Centre.
Acknowledging the geopolitical complexities created by the Russia–Ukraine conflict, Wright noted India’s energy ties with Moscow. “Where does the sanctioned Russian oil go? It goes to China, India, and Turkiye, and that helps Russia fund that war. That’s where the friction lies,” he remarked.
Despite differences over Russian oil imports, Wright underscored that Washington’s priority is to deepen energy ties with India. “We want nothing more than more trade and energy cooperation with India—in natural gas, coal, nuclear, clean cooking fuels, and liquid petroleum gas,” he said, adding that both nations share the goal of ending the war in Ukraine.
Responding to questions on India’s reliance on discounted Russian crude, Wright argued that New Delhi had alternatives. “India doesn’t need to buy Russian oil. They buy it because it is cheaper. But that money is funding a war taking thousands of lives each week. We wish India would work with us. America has oil to sell, so does every other nation except Russia,” he said.
Wright clarified that Washington does not intend to punish India, stressing: “We want to end the war, and we want to grow our relations with India.”
