Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a new phase of strategic cooperation between the countries. The leaders agreed not only to deepen trade and economic ties but also to diversify the structure of mutual trade, moving beyond traditional sectors of energy and defense.
This is reported by Finway
New Goals and Trade Expansion
Russia aims to significantly increase imports of Indian goods, particularly in the agriculture and industrial sectors. The parties set a goal to boost bilateral trade turnover to $100 billion by 2030. At the same time, Russia commits to providing India with stable fuel supplies, which remain one of the key export directions to this country.
“We have agreed on an economic cooperation program for the period up to 2030. This will make our trade and investments more diversified, balanced, and sustainable,” Modi noted.
According to last year’s results, the volume of trade operations between India and Russia reached $65 billion, exceeding pre-war figures by more than three times. However, analysts predict that by 2026, oil imports from Russia to India may decrease to approximately 600,000 barrels per day — the lowest level since 2021. Despite this, even the reduced volumes remain higher than previous years’ figures, and the market can quickly restore purchasing rates due to new logistics channels and alternative suppliers.
Development of Industrial and Military Projects
The parties also announced the establishment of a joint venture for fertilizer production on Russian territory. Additionally, there are plans to expand cooperation in agriculture, healthcare, and shipping. Special attention is given to the defense sector: India and Russia will review the format of military-technical cooperation. In particular, this involves the joint production in India of spare parts and components for servicing Russian weapons and military equipment.
An important step was the agreement on the lease of a Russian nuclear submarine for approximately $2 billion. This further emphasizes the strategic nature of military-technical partnership between the countries.
At the same time, about 20 Indian banks have already opened special accounts in rupees, which will allow Indian companies to conduct transactions with Russian partners more effectively and facilitate the circumvention of Western sanctions.
Vladimir Putin’s visit to India was the first since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, adding special political significance to the meeting.