August 14, 2026: In a rather unexpected shift, Russia, one of the world's largest exporters of oil (both crude and processed variants), has found itself having to import petrol from India, a country which imports nearly 90% of its domestic crude requirements. The reason behind this is the ongoing Russia-Ukraine War, which is now in its fourth year. We are going to tell you exactly what has turned crude-exporting Russia into a petrol-importing nation.

According to a report in the New York-based financial news outlet, Bloomberg, Russia received a shipment of about 42,000 barrels of petrol from Indian processor Nayara Energy Ltd on August 5, last week, marking the first ever time Moscow has imported the fuel from India.

Bloomberg reported that for the inaugural shipment, Russian-flagged products tanker Cyclone (formerly Agni) loaded a 42,000-ton petrol cargo from the port of Vadinar in Gujarat on June 18. The fuel was then transferred to the Oman-flagged Garnet at Damietta Port, off Egypt's Mediterranean coast, on July 6. That vessel then reached Russia in early August.

And it's not the last such shipment. Bloomberg reported that at least two more ships had docked at Vadinar in July and taken onboard fuel before transferring them onto ships in Egyptian ports that are believed to be headed towards Russia.

(Source: India today)