MOSCOW — India’s External Affairs Minister, S. Jaishankar, met with his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, in Moscow today to advance the “Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership” between the two nations. The talks are part of preparations for the upcoming India-Russia Annual Summit.
In his opening remarks, Jaishankar said the meeting was an opportunity to review bilateral ties in the context of an “evolving geopolitical situation, shifting economic and trade landscape, and our shared goals to maximise our complementarity.” The minister expressed confidence that the discussions would make the annual summit “as outcome-oriented as possible.”
This visit is particularly significant as it comes amid growing trade imbalances between the two countries, largely driven by India’s increased procurement of Russian crude oil. Ministers also discussed ways to create financial and logistical systems that are independent of countries that have imposed sanctions, including the expansion of trade settlements in national currencies—the rupee and the ruble—to mitigate the impact of external pressures.
