European nations accounted for 23 per cent of Russia’s fossil fuel export revenue since the start of the Ukraine war, significantly higher than India’s 13 per cent share, according to new data published by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air.

Indian government sources said the figures exposed the hypocrisy of Western countries that had accused India of buying Russian oil while themselves continuing purchases to meet their own energy needs. The European Union, they pointed out, had been importing not just oil and gas, but also fertilisers, chemicals, iron, steel, and transport-related equipment from Russia.

“These statistics only justify India’s focus on making sure for its people have constant and cheap energy supplies,” said an unnamed source.

The data emerged a day after the United States doubled tariffs on Indian exports to 50 per cent, accusing India of “fueling the Russian war machine” by continuing to import Russian oil. This followed last month’s EU sanctions against the Indian refinery Nayara Energy. The Finland-based independent research group’s findings supported India’s repeated claim of a Western “double standard” in targeting its energy trade.

According to the report, Russia has earned 923 billion euros so far from fossil fuel exports, including oil, gas, coal, refined fuels, and their derivatives.

Of this, EU member states accounted for 212 billion euros, while India’s imports stood at 121 billion euros. China remained Russia’s biggest energy buyer with imports worth over 200 billion euros.

The report also found that G7 countries have taken on a greater share of shipping Russian oil since the EU’s June sanctions. “Since Jan, the G7+ share of Russian oil transport has risen from 36% to 56%,” it stated. In June, over half of Russia’s seaborne oil exports were carried by G7+ tankers, six percentage points higher than in May.

As these shipments used Western-owned tankers, they complied with the price cap and other sanctions-related rules. India has maintained that its Russian oil imports help keep global oil prices stable, with Russian crude making up nearly 9 per cent of the world’s daily supply. This, Indian officials said, was why the US and EU had imposed a price cap instead of banning Russian oil outright, as a ban would have triggered supply shortages and price spikes.

Still, the report noted that “Russian fossil fuel revenues in the second quarter of 2025 fell by 18% year-on-year – lowest in a quarter since the invasion of Ukraine.” This decline came despite an 8 per cent increase in export volumes compared to the first quarter of 2025.