President of Russia Vladimir Putin held talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on December 5, drawing attention and discussion from the outside world.
Despite repeated pressure from the United States on India to block its import of Russian fuel, Russia and India have strengthened cooperation in areas such as energy and trade. After the talks, Modi announced that India and Russia have agreed to expand bilateral trade.
Putin: Russia will be a reliable supplier of energy for India
According to reports from Reuters and Sputnik News, after the talks between Putin and Modi, both sides issued a joint statement, including a number of major cooperation plans in political, security, economic, financial, transportation, energy, education, and cultural fields between India and Russia.
After the India-Russia talks, Putin introduced that a series of government-to-government, departmental, and enterprise-level agreements were signed. Many of these agreements aim to expand economic cooperation between Russia and India.
Modi said that India and Russia have reached an agreement on an economic cooperation plan aimed at expanding bilateral trade until 2030.
Putin said that the partnership between India and Russia in the energy sector is developing smoothly. Despite India facing pressure from the United States to stop purchasing oil from Russia, Russia is still prepared to provide "uninterrupted supply" of fuel to India.
He emphasized that Russia is a reliable supplier of resources needed for India's development.
Modi also said that energy security is a very important foundation of the India-Russia partnership.
He emphasized, "I hope the meeting with Putin will inject momentum into India-Russia economic cooperation."
Putin said that as India and Russia and their economies develop, the opportunities for cooperation between the two countries are continuously expanding. Cooperation opportunities in fields such as high technology, aerospace, and artificial intelligence frequently emerge.
Putin added, "We maintain a highly trusting relationship in military-technical cooperation and plan to continue promoting cooperation in all these areas."
Putin also mentioned, "I am pleased to note that we have increasingly been using our own currencies in mutual settlements, and currently, the share of currency settlement in business transactions has reached 96%."
Regarding the Ukraine conflict, Modi told Putin, "India is not neutral. India has a clear position, which is to uphold peace, and we support all efforts for peace, and firmly support every initiative that promotes peace."
Putin thanked Modi for his attention and efforts regarding the resolution of the Ukraine conflict. He said, "You provided me with an opportunity to elaborate on the situation in Ukraine, and also allowed me to explain the joint measures taken by us and partners, including the United States, to promote the peaceful resolution of the crisis."
India will still expand cooperation with Russia despite U.S. pressure
After Russia launched its "special military operation" against Ukraine, European countries reduced their dependence on Russian energy, while India increased its purchase of discounted Russian crude oil. However, due to the impact of U.S. tariffs and sanctions, India reduced related purchases this year.
Reuters reported that India is the largest buyer of Russian weapons and seaborne oil, and Russia is also India's largest weapons supplier. Putin's visit aims to strengthen trade cooperation with India.
It is worth noting that India and the United States are currently negotiating tariff issues. Previously, due to India's continued purchase of Russian oil, former U.S. President Trump imposed punitive tariffs on Indian goods.
Russia expressed its hope to import more Indian goods and to increase bilateral trade to a scale of $100 billion by 2030. Currently, due to India's large-scale import of Russian energy, the bilateral trade presents a surplus for Russia.
Reuters reported that Indian companies may sign an agreement with Uralkali, the largest potash and ammonium nitrate producer in Russia, to jointly build a urea plant in Russia.
Additionally, Gazprombank and Alpha Bank, Russia's largest private bank, have applied to operate in India to help Russia expand its trade with India.
Topics discussed during the talks between Modi and Putin also included labor cooperation and civil nuclear energy.
Putin: The U.S. also buys our fuel, why can't India?
This visit was Putin's first trip to India in four years.
On December 4, when Putin arrived in New Delhi, Modi greeted him at the airport tarmac with a hug. Subsequently, the two traveled together in one car to attend a private dinner hosted by Modi.
On the 5th, Putin attended a grand welcome ceremony in front of the presidential palace in India, and the procession entered with 21 gun salutes.
This visit to India, Putin led a large business and government delegation, including Defense Minister Andrei Belousov, who held talks with Indian Defense Minister Rajnath Singh on the 4th.
After the talks, the Indian Ministry of Defense stated that Belousov said, "Russia's defense industry is ready to support India's goal of achieving self-reliance in defense production."
In a program aired on the evening of the 4th, "Today's India," Putin questioned the U.S. pressure on India not to buy Russian fuel, pointing out that the U.S. itself is purchasing Russian nuclear fuel.
"If the U.S. has the right to buy our fuel, why can't India have the same treatment?" Putin asked, "This issue deserves further exploration, and we are ready to discuss it at any time, including communicating with former President Trump."
He also revealed that although bilateral trade between Russia and India showed a slight decline in the first nine months of this year, energy trade "progressed smoothly."
Russia remains India's largest oil supplier - BBC
India also stated that the U.S. government's tariff measures are neither reasonable nor fair, and pointed out that the U.S. continues to maintain trade relations with Russia. At present, the U.S. and the EU continue to import energy and commodities worth billions of dollars from Russia, covering multiple categories such as liquefied natural gas and enriched uranium.
Before this visit to India, Putin had just held talks with U.S. Middle East special envoy Witteko on a Ukrainian peace agreement, but no consensus was reached.
India calls for resolving the Ukraine conflict through dialogue and diplomatic means to achieve peace. At the same time, India said that Western countries maintain commercial relations with Russia when it suits their interests, but unfairly point fingers at India-Russia relations.
Michael Kugelman, a senior researcher at the Atlantic Council think tank, wrote in a recent article in Foreign Policy magazine: "India is facing a dilemma. Whether to strengthen relations with Moscow or deepen cooperation with Washington, it could lead to strained relations with the other side."
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