Strategic calculations are driving India to preserve its close economic and security ties with Russia while also avoiding a major escalation of tensions with the West. On Dec. 2, an official from the Indian oil ministry recently announced that India would continue buying Russian oil, even after the Group of 7 (G-7) price cap on Russian crude shipments went into effect (which it did on Dec. 5). India -- which has emerged as a major buyer of Russian oil over the past year -- has opted not to support the price cap mechanism, despite U.S. and European efforts to convince the South Asian giant to join them in imposing more pressure on Russia amid the ongoing war in Ukraine....
