India hasn't given Russia any money in exchange for its inexpensive imports of oil, which it has been using for both domestic use and
export as refined goods.
Since the beginning of the Russian Special Operation (SMO) in Ukraine in February 2022, India and Russia have been looking into options for settling their commerce in rupees or rubles, but even after more than a year, they have made little progress.
India might pay Russia the accumulated billions of rupees by converting them into a currency like the Chinese Yuan, but doing so would incur a fee. The huge trade surplus between China and India makes the rupee particularly vulnerable to the Yuan.
Rupee-to-rouble trade between Russia and India has reportedly been halted, according to Reuters. The import of inexpensive Russian oil since the start of the Ukraine war will probably be limited by the halt, if not entirely stopped.
Russian defence OEMs have found success in the Indian market. However, India would suffer more than Russia if Russian defence OEMs were unable to conduct business there. The Middle East, South America, and Africa are just a few of the alternative markets that Russian OEMs will easily find as the world steadily marches towards multipolarity.
However, India, on the other hand, would transition from a regional power to a vassal state of the US.
