US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday concluded a two-day India visit that departed from diplomatic convention, bypassing New Delhi for Mumbai and the Reliance Industries’ vast refinery complex in Jamnagar. The trip, which came as Washington and New Delhi edge closer to a long-awaited trade deal, offered a clear view of the Trump administration’s priorities in India, with energy, and Venezuelan crude in particular, at the top.
HT looks at the big takeaways from Rubio’s visit:
Tribute and talks in Mumbai
Rubio, who arrived in Mumbai on Tuesday, began his visit by laying a wreath at a memorial for the victims of the 26/11 terror attacks, in which six Americans were also killed. He then met External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar for a meeting that largely focused on trade, energy, defence, technology and people-to-people relations.
On Wednesday, the US Secretary of State focused on meetings with India’s largest business houses, meeting Tata chief N Chandrasekaran and Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani before heading to Jamnagar for a tour with Reliance chairman Mukesh Ambani. Reliance said the visit centred on the firm’s massive refinery in the city, upcoming new energy giga-factories and data centres.
Mumbai over Delhi
Rubio’s decision to visit Mumbai and skip Delhi, the usual stop for visiting dignitaries, drew much attention. But the focus on Mumbai, and particularly his closely watched meeting with Reliance Industries, said a lot about his priorities.
Washington has made clear that it wants India to purchase more energy from Venezuela in the aftermath of an American military operation that toppled President Nicolas Maduro in January this year. Over the last year, the Trump administration has played an increasingly large role in running Venezuela’s highly lucrative oil sector. The government even brokered an agreement giving it a major ownership stake in NABEP, an energy firm that has been handed control of oil fields holding 65 billion barrels of proven reserves.
Given Venezuela’s staggering overdependence on oil export revenues and Washington’s need to shore up the US-backed government currently in power, the Trump administration has been looking for major export markets for Venezuelan energy. That is where Reliance, which runs the world’s largest refinery complex in Jamnagar, fits into Rubio and the administration’s calculations.
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India has ramped up crude oil imports from Venezuela in recent months, with much of the energy heading to Reliance’s refinery in Jamnagar. According to analytics firm Kpler, Reliance accounted for an estimated 76% of India’s crude oil imports from Venezuela in September this year. Rubio said he would discuss Venezuela with Reliance and even spoke of India’s position as a “refining superpower”.
Confronting anti-India sentiment
Rubio also made notable remarks on key challenges in the US-India relationship. He became one of the few senior Trump administration officials to directly address concerns over rising anti-Indian hatred, attributing it to “ignorance” and “hatred” among small groups in American society. Besides, he stressed the importance of senior leaders refraining from encouraging such sentiment.
The US Secretary of State’s remarks on India’s Russian oil purchases were also significant. He said that maintaining a strong relationship with India was one factor behind President Trump’s recent decision to waive tariffs on India and other countries for buying Russian energy.
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Last week, Trump announced that he would waive tariffs that could have targeted India and four nations for purchasing Russian oil and gas, just a month after the House of Representatives passed an act giving him the power to levy up to 100% tariffs on the top five purchasers of Russian energy.
Rubio also acknowledged that it would be difficult for India to move away from Russian crude in a short time. This suggests that at least some of India’s messaging about its energy relationship with Russia is getting through to senior decision makers.
On the trade deal, Rubio asserted the two sides are “very, very close” with just a few remaining details left to be ironed out.