The highlights this week: New U.S. and EU sanctions on Russian oil companies have knock-on effects for India, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi doesn’t make an in-person appearance at the ASEAN summit , and Afghanistan-Pakistan talks break down after cross-border violence.

Welcome to Foreign Policy’s South Asia Brief.

The highlights this week: New U.S. and EU sanctions on Russian oil companies have knock-on effects for India, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi doesn’t make an in-person appearance at the ASEAN summit, and Afghanistan-Pakistan talks break down after cross-border violence.

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India’s Oil Dilemma

India—the world’s second-biggest importer of crude oil from Russia—is bracing for impact following the recent announcement of new U.S. and European Union sanctions on Russian oil companies.

Despite India’s deep commercial partnership with Russia, it hasn’t always been a top customer for its oil. New Delhi imports 85 percent of its total oil needs. But in 2021, the year before Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, just 2 percent of these imports came from Russia. That year, its top source for oil imports was Iraq, and India was also the top destination for U.S. oil exports.

But India’s purchases of Russian oil soared amid the war in Ukraine, registering at some