Putin's Delhi Visit: Reinforcing Defence and Trade at India-Russia Summit

Post by : Mina Rahman

On Thursday, December 4, Russian President Vladimir Putin will touch down in New Delhi for a pivotal two-day visit, culminating in summit discussions with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday, December 5. This represents Putin's first trip to India since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, underscoring the sustained strategic partnership between the two countries.

The discussions are set to focus on bolstering defence collaboration, ensuring that bilateral trade is shielded from American sanctions, and exploring joint efforts in nuclear energy, including proposals for small modular reactors. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitri Peskov stated that Russia is keen to leverage these talks to protect trade ties with India from US restrictions. Furthermore, a critical defence agreement with New Delhi has recently been approved by the Russian Parliament, affirming the long-standing military alliance.

Officials indicate that this visit also allows India to assert its strategic independence. Despite external pressures, especially from the United States to scale back its imports of Russian military equipment and energy, India is striving to preserve solid economic and defence links with Moscow.

In recent developments, an agreement facilitating the movement of skilled and semi-skilled workers has been finalized between the nations. Concurrently, talks are progressing on a free trade agreement (FTA) between India and the Eurasian Economic Union—a five-member coalition that includes Russia—addressing India's concerns over tariffs and non-tariff barriers to enhance trade flows.

In a further bid to fortify bilateral relations, the State Duma, Russia's lower house of parliament, has recently ratified the Reciprocal Exchange of Logistic Support (RELOS) agreement, which was initially signed on February 18. Vyacheslav Volodin, Speaker of the State Duma, emphasized that this ratification is a significant milestone towards developing reciprocal ties and advancing India-Russia relations, highlighting the strategic depth of their partnership.

The anticipated summit aims to strengthen cooperation in defence, energy, and economics while navigating the hurdles posed by international sanctions, reflecting the resilience of the India-Russia relationship.