<h1>Sovereign trade autonomy affirmed as India defends energy purchases amid extraterritorial tariffs, maintaining independent partner selection.</h1> Russia affirms that India's relations with the United States are not a criterion for India-Russia ties and that India's energy procurement and partner selection are matters of national interest; the India-Russia economic and strategic partnership will continue across trade, military technical cooperation and high technology, notwithstanding extraterritorial tariffs imposed by a third state as a penalty for India's purchases of Russian oil.