India cannot sacrifice economic strength to comply with US sanctions, says Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman

India wants to comply with global sanctions, including U.S. sanctions on Venezuela and Russia, but also needs to maintain its own strength and strategic interests, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in an interview on Tuesday.

The United States in January imposed the toughest sanctions yet on Venezuela’s oil industry. The move has scared away some global customers, but with few alternative suppliers of heavy oil, Indian refiner Reliance Industries Ltd has been buying Venezuelan crude from Russian major Rosneft. The company is set to resume direct oil loadings in the South American nation after a four-month pause.

Sitharaman said the Indian government has expressed its view to the United States.

“In specific issues which are critical for India’s strategic interests, we have explained to the United States that India is a strategic partner for the United States of America and you want a strategic partner to be strong and not weakened,” she said.