WASHINGTON (AP) \u2014 President Joe Biden is set to speak with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday as he presses world leaders to take a hard line against Russia\u2019s Ukraine invasion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
India\u2019s neutral stance in the war has\u00a0raised concerns in Washington\u00a0and earned praise from Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, who\u00a0lauded India this month\u00a0for judging \u201cthe situation in its entirety, not just in a one-sided way.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Most recently, India abstained when the U.N. General Assembly voted Thursday to\u00a0suspend Russia from its seat\u00a0on the 47-member Human Rights Council over allegations that Russian soldiers in Ukraine engaged in rights violations that the U.S. and Ukraine have called war crimes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The vote was 93-24 with 58 abstentions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the virtual meeting, Biden will talk about the consequences of Russia\u2019s war against Ukraine \u201cand mitigating its destabilizing impact on global food supply and commodity markets,\u201d White House press secretary Jen Psaki said in a statement Sunday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
They\u2019ll discuss \u201cstrengthening the global economy, and upholding a free, open, rules-based international order to bolster security, democracy, and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
India continues to purchase Russian energy supplies, despite pressure from Western countries to avoid buying Russian oil and gas. The U.S. has also considered sanctions on India for its recent purchase of advanced Russian air defense systems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Last month, the state-run Indian Oil Corp.\u00a0bought 3 million barrels\u00a0of crude from Russia to secure its needs, resisting entreaties from the West to avoid such purchases. India isn\u2019t alone in buying Russian energy, however. Several European allies such as Germany\u00a0have continued to do so, despite public pressure to end these contracts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Indian media reports said Russia was offering a discount on oil purchases of 20% below global benchmark prices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Iraq is India\u2019s top supplier, with a 27% share. Saudi Arabia is second at around 17%, followed by the United Arab Emirates with 13% and the U.S. at 9%, the Press Trust of India news agency reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Biden and Modi last spoke in March.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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