Prime Minister Narendra Modi will maintain a bilateral assembly with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the present day,1 September, following the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Tianjin, China.
International Secretary Vikram Misri confirmed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will first deal with the SCO plenary session earlier than assembly President Putino
“Tomorrow, the Prime Minister can be addressing the plenary session of the Summit, the place he’ll define India’s method to fostering regional cooperation underneath the SCO umbrella. After this engagement, he’s scheduled to have a bilateral assembly with President Vladimir Putin of Russia, following which he’ll depart for India,” Misri mentioned throughout a particular briefing in Tianjin on Sunday.
The assembly assumes significance because it comes at a time when India is underneath relentless stress from the Trump administration to cut back its buy of Russian crude oil.
This can be Narendra Modi and Vladimir Putin’s first in-person assembly after Trump’s second US presidency. The 2 leaders final met on the margins of the BRICS Summit in Kazan, Russia, in October 2024.
What’s on the agenda?
Whereas India has not but retaliated to US tariffs, it has sought to strengthen its friendship with Russia and recalibrate its ties with China in latest weeks.
Stories recommended that Modi and Putin may take up a few of the points that their
International Minister S Jaishankar met his Russian counterpart in Moscow on August 22. The 2 leaders mentioned sustaining India-Russian vitality cooperation by means of commerce and investments, joint extraction of vitality assets, together with within the Russian Federation, within the Far East, and on the Arctic shelf, and the stability of bilateral commerce, which is at present in Russia’s favour.
Modi and Putin can take up a few of these points throughout their assembly in the present day, in line with studies.
India desires to extend exports to Russia
India desires to extend its exports to Russia in sectors like medicines, farm merchandise, and textiles to cut back the commerce hole. New Delhi has additionally requested Moscow to rapidly take away non-tariff limitations and different guidelines that make it arduous for Indian items to enter Russia. At current, Russia is India’s fourth-largest buying and selling accomplice, whereas India is Russia’s second-largest.
India and Russia have stepped up engagements in latest weeks, extra so after Trump’s tariffs had been introduced.
Modi and Putin spoke over the cellphone twice sinceDonald Trump signed the chief order on 7 August to impose a 25 per cent penalty on Indian items, which kicked in on 27 August, for purchasing Russian oil. Whereas International Minister Jaishankar was in Moscow on 22 August, Nationwide Safety Adviser (NSA) Ajit Doval visited Russia within the first week of August
Stories final month recommended that New Delhi and Moscow have finalised Putin’s go to to India, possible in December, for the India-Russia Annual Summit.
Earlier than the Modi-Putin assembly, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky additionally spoke with the Indian Prime Minister over the cellphone.
“We exchanged views on the continued battle, its humanitarian side, and efforts to revive peace and stability. India extends full assist to all efforts on this path,” Prime Minister Modi mentioned after the decision.
Modi-Xi meet
The Modi-Putin assembly is scheduled a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Chinese language President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the SCO leaders’ summit. This was their first assembly after the BRICS summit in Kazan, Russia, in 2024.
PM Narendra Modi later joined the official reception of the summit, hosted by President Xi on the Tianjin Meijiang Worldwide Conference and Exhibition Centre. He was greeted warmly by Xi Jinping and his spouse, Peng Liyuan, earlier than becoming a member of different world leaders for a bunch {photograph} symbolising regional unity.
Putin additionally attended the official reception together with senior members of his delegation, together with International Minister Sergey Lavrov, Deputy Prime Minister Alexey Overchuk, Deputy Chief of Workers Maxim Oreshkin, Kremlin Aide Yury Ushakov and Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov, in line with Russian information company TASS.
The assembly assumes significance because it comes at a time when India is underneath relentless stress from the Trump administration to cut back its buy of Russian crude oil.
The Ministry of Exterior Affairs (MEA) mentioned PM Modi invited Xi Jinping to the BRICS Summit that India will host in 2026.
President Xi thanked PM Modi for the invitation and supplied China’s assist to India’s BRICS Presidency.
