The United States and Australia criticised India for considering a Russian proposal that would undermine sanctions imposed by America and its allies, showing a deepening rift between the emerging security partners as Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov travelled to Delhi for talks. 

Speaking to reporters in Washington on Wednesday, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo said, “Now is the time to stand on the right side of history, and to stand with the United States and dozens of other countries, standing up for freedom, democracy and sovereignty with the Ukrainian people, and not funding and fuelling and aiding President Putin’s war.”

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Dan Tehan, Australia’s trade minister who also spoke at the briefing, said it was important for democracies to work together “to keep the rules-based approach that we’ve had since the second world war.”

The comments reflect growing unease with India among fellow members of the Quad, a group of democracies seeking to counter China’s assertiveness in the Asia-Pacific region that also includes the US, Australia and Japan.

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India is the world’s largest buyer of Russian weapons, and has also sought to buy cheap oil as fuel prices surge.

While India has supported calls for a cease-fire and a diplomatic solution, it abstained at the United Nations on votes for draft resolutions condemning Russia’s invasion that were ultimately vetoed by Moscow.

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On Wednesday, Bloomberg reported that India is weighing a plan to make rupee-ruble-denominated payments using an alternative to SWIFT after the US and European Union cut off seven Russian banks from using the Belgium-based cross-border payment system operator.  

The Russian plan involves rupee-ruble-denominated payments using the country’s messaging system SPFS and central bank officials from Moscow are likely to visit next week to discuss the details. No final decision has been taken.

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India’s middle-ground position on the war has left a raft of diplomacy in the past few weeks, with China’s foreign minister visiting for the first time since 2019 and now Lavrov seeking to shore up support. At the same time, the US and its allies are also stepping up engagement in a bid to influence Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government.

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India has pushed back against US concerns by noting that it needs Russian arms to counter China, particularly after border clashes in 2020, and alternatives are too expensive.