India resists US, EU on Iran sanctions

India is hesitant to implement all aspects of US and European Union sanctions against Iran, a congressional report has said, attributing this to New Delhi's reliance on Tehran with regards to Afghanistan and the historic, cultural and economic ties between the two nations.
"India is implementing UN sanctions against Iran but its cultural, economic, and historic ties--as well as its strategic need for access to Afghanistan-- have made India hesitant to adopt all aspects of US and EU sanctions on Iran," the Congressional Research Service (CRS) said in its latest report on Iran.
Apparently perceiving international sentiment for tightening sanctions on Iran, India has been reducing its dependence on Iranian oil, CRS said.
According to a table compiled by CRS, even as India has considerably reduced its import of oil from Iran from a high 320,000 barrels per day (bpd) in 2011 to 280,000 bpd in 2012, it is the second largest importer of crude oil after China, which in 2012 imported 400,000 bpd.