In a compelling statement of strategic autonomy, India will host Russian President Valdimir Putin for the annual summit in December amid intensifying pressure from the US to reduce oil imports and downgrade ties with Moscow.
Although no official announcement has been made by New Delhi and Moscow, the two sides are looking at December 5-6 for talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Putin in New Delhi. This will be President Putin’s first visit to India since the Russia-Ukraine conflict started in February 2022.
The talks in Delhi will pick up threads from the last meeting between the two leaders in northern Chinese city of Tianjin on the sidelines of the SCO summit on September 1. The key issues on the agenda will be to sustain the oil trade amid onerous US tariffs, diversify economic ties and finalise new defence deals.
The two sides have set up the target of scaling up bilateral trade to $100 billion by 2030. To achieve this target, the two sides will be discussing steps to reduce trade barriers and facilitate payment mechanisms using national currencies.
Bridging trade deficit, which has surpassed $60 billion, will be an important priority for India. Russia is expected to enhance market access for Indian exports of pharmaceuticals, agri-machinery, and automobile components. India-Russia bilateral trade has increased five times over the last five years and reached around 67 billion USD in 2024. There is tremendous scope for increasing India’s exports to Russia in areas like Information Technology and pharma products.
The defence ties, the bedrock of India-Russia strategic partnership, will get boost with new defence pacts on procurement of additional units of S-400, the star performer during the four-day India-Pakistan war in May 2025. The two sides are expected to conclude a deal for the supply of additional S-400 during Putin’s visit to India in December. India signed a $5.5 billion deal with Russia in 2018 for five S-400 Triumf long-range surface-to-air missile systems. Russia has already supplied 3 S-400 units and will deliver units of the final two S-400 systems to India in 2026 and 2027.
While the details of the agenda and outcomes are being worked out, Putin’s visit will have a special symbolic resonance and will send a pointed message to the US that India will not dilute or downgrade its ties with Moscow under pressure. The visit will reinforce the importance of Moscow for New Delhi’s defence and energy security calculus.
Author Profile
- Manish Chand is Founder and Editor-in-Chief of India Writes Network (www.indiawrites.org) and India and World, a pioneering magazine focused on international affairs. He is CEO, Centre for Global India Insights, an India-based think tank focused on global affairs.
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