India news: Rubio to visit India for trade, Quad talks

The US Secretary of State's visit to India is likely to center around the Quad alliance and energy trade.

Meanwhile, India-bound crude tankers have reportedly crossed the Strait of Hormuz.

This blog is now closed.

Below is a roundup of the news from India on Friday, April 10:
It's the end of the workday in New Delhi and time for me to kick back and enjoy a windy evening.

I will be back tomorrow morning with fresh headlines and everything you need to know from India.

India's petroleum minister discusses global energy disruption in Qatar
India and Qatar discussed the importance of putting an early end to the disruption in global energy supplies, said Indian petroleum minister Hardeep Singh Puri, as a fragile ceasefire between the US and Iran takes hold.

Puri is currently on a two-day visit to Qatar, the single largest supplier of liquified natural gas (LNG) and liquified petroleum gas (LPG) to India.

The minister met with Qatar's Minister of State for Energy Affairs and the President and CEO of QatarEnergy, Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi in Doha.

In a social media post on Friday, Puri wrote: "My friend H.E.

Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi has reaffirmed the State of Qatar’s commitment to remain a reliable energy supplier and looked forward to continuing and strengthening energy relations and cooperation with India."
Puri's visit to Qatar is part of New Delhi's diplomatic outreach to the Middle East post the ceasefire between Iran and the US, in an effort to restore India's energy security.

India's Minister of External Affairs Subrahmanyam Jaishankar is set to visit the UAE on April 11 and 12.

India must rethink energy reliance on Middle East: ONGC Chief
The head of India's largest oil and gas company believes the country must rethink its reliance on sourcing crude oil from the Middle East, as the world reels from the biggest energy shock in decades due to the Iran war.

India is facing a shortage of liquified petroleum gas (LPG), widely used as cooking gas due to the supply disruptions from the conflict.

Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) Chairman and CEO Arun Kumar Singh said that the country must invest in building strategic stores to insulate itself against such disruptions, PTI reported.

He was speaking at an energy conclave organised by India's oil regulator.

"Thinking that the Middle East is nearest to us and therefore all their resources (can be accessed easily), we should take it with a pinch of salt," Singh said.

Supreme Court seeks answers over Indians forcibly sent to fight war in Ukraine
India's top court on Friday sought a response from Indian authorities on a plea alleging Indians were sent to fight the war in Ukraine on the pretext of education or employment.

News agency ANI reported the Supreme Court has sought responses from the central government, India's Foreign Ministry and India's ambassador to Russia, among others.

"Despite such repeated representations and requests for assistance, the families continue to remain without any verified information regarding the fate of their relatives, many of whom are believed to be detained, injured, forcibly engaged in armed conflict," the plea read.

In 2024, DW's Shalu Yadav reported on the plight of Indians who were duped into joining the Russian army by travel agents and sent to the front lines in Ukraine.

Ukraine war: Plight of Indians trapped in Russian army
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
'The government will decide my gender' — India reacts to transgender law amendment
India’s trans community no longer has the right to self-identification.

Tan, who identifies as non-binary, does crisis intervention work.

Every time they help a young person understand whether they are trans or not — a journey Tan went through themself — they could go to jail for it.

DW's Shalu Yadav reports from New Delhi:
India-bound tanker transits Strait of Hormuz amid ceasefire: reports
The first non-Iranian oil tanker, which is bound for India, passed through the Strait of Hormuz since a fragile ceasefire between Iran and the US took hold, as per reports.

News Agency AFP reported that a Gabon-flagged crude oil tanker, the MSG, had sailed through the strait with Emirati fuel and was expected in India soon.

Indian outlet, The Hindu , reported that two India-bound ships with crude oil had passed the strait since the ceasefire took effect.

One of the ships was the MSG, while the other, the Marivex, was carrying oil from Bandar Abbas in Iran to the Indian port of New Mangalore.

About a fifth of global crude and gas typically passes through the strategic chokepoint but the flow of oil was severely disrupted by the US-Isarel war with Iran.

Even after the ceasefire, the crucial waterway has not fully reopened.

The supply disruption has led to a shortage of cooking gas in India, affecting hotels, households and businesses.

India has continued to engage Iran in diplomatic talks to secure the passing of a few Indian vessels carrying LPG and crude oil, over the past month.

Why reopening the Strait of Hormuz by force is so dangerous
India nearing deal to supply oil, gas to Mauritius
New Delhi is finalizing an agreement to supply oil and gas to Mauritius amid the energy crisis over the Middle East conflict, Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar has said.

Jaishankar made the comments while visiting the Asian island nation for the 9th Indian Ocean Conference, PTI reported on Thursday evening.

He said the conflict in the Middle East had underscored the importance of strategic partnerships.

While India Imports 90% of its crude oil needs, it is also a major refiner and exporter of oil and gas to smaller nations in the region.

It has supplied oil and gas to several neighboring nations over the last month, including Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

Could oil be a point of contention between US and India?

Washington has gone to great lengths to steer its allies away from Russian and Iranian oil.

Under the threat of US President Donald Trump's tariffs, India's imports of Russian crude fell in 2025.

A few months, a war and a waiver later, the question stands — will oil resurface as a sticking point between New Delhi and Washington when the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio visits India in May?

Since the Iran war began, the US first gave India and then the rest of the world a waiver to buy Russian crude oil.

It is a temporary measure meant to help countries secure their energy needs while Trump and Netanyahu's campaign disrupts oil flow from the Gulf.

Over the last month, Indian officials confirmed they were purchasing crude oil and LPG from any and all available sources, including Russia.

On April 8, several reports said that India was set to receive its first oil shipment from Iran in seven years .

India hadn't purchased crude from Iran since May 2019 due to US sanctions.

Why are India's oil purchases a diplomatic flashpoint?

In February, Trump and Rubio claimed a diplomatic victory, saying India had "committed" to stop buying Russian oil and had already taken significant steps to reduce imports.

Trump said this while rescinding the 25% punitive tariffs imposed on India in August 2025, adding that the tariffs would apply again if India returned to purchasing Russian oil.

While India did not publicly confirm that commitment, Indian refineries increased purchases of Venezuelan crude oil to their highest level in six years, as per reports by Indian media.

When questioned about the oil purchases in February, Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar had said that India was "wedded" to its strategic autonomy and would do what was in its best interests.

This week, Reuters reported that India expects the US to extend its waiver on purchases of Russian oil to help bring down global crude prices that have surged because of the war in the Middle East.

New Delhi and Washington remain close allies in areas of security, trade, defense and technology.

But oil purchases, Trump's tariffs and diplomatic rows between Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi have introduced a tense undercurrent over the past year.

India's double bind: Trying to mollify Russia, US
Marco Rubio to visit India in May to talk trade, Quad alliance
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio will visit India in May.

The trip is expected to focus on talks on trade and security, as both nations look to limit the impact of the US-Israel war with Iran.

US ambassador to India Sergio Gor confirmed the trip in a post on X.

He welcomed India's foreign secretary Vikram Misri to the White House, where they met with Rubio.

"Welcome to the White House Vikram Misri!

Productive meeting with Secretary Rubio that focused on our bilateral relationship, especially trade, critical minerals, defense and the Quad.

Secretary Rubio looks forward to visiting India next month!" Gor said, accompanied by a picture of the three.

Rubio is likely to discuss the same topics in depth during his visit next month.

The Quad, or the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, is an informal security group made up of the US, India, Japan and Australia.

It aims to maintain a "free and open Indo-Pacific." That aim has taken on special importance after the conflict in the Middle East severely restricted global trade in the region.

Indian diplomat Misri went to Washington on April 8, the day the ceasefire was announced.

Before Rubio, Misri met US Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs Allison Hooker.

According to India's state-run radio, Misri and Hooker discussed their two nations' bilateral agenda and exchanged views on recent developments in the Middle East.

Good morning!

and welcome to DW's India news blog.

This is Mahima Kapoor, reporting from a sunny New Delhi this Friday morning.

I will bring you the biggest headlines, debates and talking points of the day in India.

New Delhi is in full "diplomacy mode," after the US and Iran reached a temporary ceasefire this week.

India's petroleum minister is currently in Qatar, and India's foreign minister is due in the UAE on Saturday.

The two Gulf nations have been heavily impacted by the war between Iran and the US and Israel.

Another top Indian diplomat, currently in Washington, has secured a state visit from US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who will arrive in India in May.

Scroll above for what's on the agenda for that visit.

India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is looking to limit the political damage from rising food and cooking gas costs amid the Iran war.

Meanwhile, opposition parties are hoping to capitalize and keep the BJP away from their strongholds.

Stick with us as we breakdown the day's news for you.