Relatives in touch: Putin will take cooperation with India to a new level
Four years later, Vladimir Putin is going to India again on a state visit. The parties will sign 10 intergovernmental documents and more than 15 commercial agreements. Moscow and New Delhi will determine the strategic directions of economic cooperation until 2030. The Kremlin hopes to reach $100 billion in trade turnover. Roscosmos and Rosatom are going to India with specific proposals. Despite Western pressure, defense cooperation is likely to develop: contracts for the supply of Su-57, S-400 and even S-500 are possible. Russia and India are global players and largely determine international security. The Russian Foreign Ministry told Izvestia that the parties are also discussing the future Eurasian Charter on Diversity and Multipolarity in the 21st century. What Putin's visit will change for Russian-Indian relations is in the Izvestia article.
What to expect from the Russian-Indian summit
The Russian president's state visit to India has been prepared for a long time, and it is very much expected in both capitals — the last time the Russian leader was there was back in 2021. On the eve of the trip, he said that Moscow intends to move to a qualitatively new level of cooperation, "including with the strengthening of the technological component."
A very intensive program is planned for two days, on December 4 and 5, which seems to affect all areas of Russian-Indian cooperation. At the same time, the tone of the entire visit will be set by an informal one-on-one meeting between Vladimir Putin and Narendra Modi at his residence on the evening of December 4. Although the leaders met just recently, at the SCO summit in Tianjin, they will definitely have something to discuss in New Delhi. "Actually, politics is made at such meetings," said Presidential aide Yuri Ushakov. All official protocols are scheduled for December 5th.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi
First, an official welcoming ceremony by the Indian side will be held at the Presidential Palace in New Delhi. Vladimir Putin will visit one of the Indian memorials, lay a wreath and enter his name in the Guest of honor book. The Russian leader's schedule also includes a meeting with Indian President Draupadi Murmu. On December 5, Russian-Indian negotiations will begin in a narrow format, and then in an expanded format. Moreover, the parties will not be limited to a couple of hours — an impressive delegation is arriving from Moscow: from relevant ministers, including Andrei Belousov, Anton Siluanov and Maxim Reshetnikov, to representatives of key state corporations and businesses, including Rosatom, Roscosmos, Rosneft, Sberbank and VTB.
The presence of the latter inspires cautious optimism in solving problems with calculations. It may be possible to agree on mutual recognition of the Mir and RuPay payment systems. And this is not the only direction to facilitate trips to Russia and India, which could receive an additional boost after the state visit. At least, representatives of the travel industry are confident that the parties will discuss the topic of group visa-free travel. Russia hopes to resolve all technical issues in the near future, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko told Izvestia. A positive decision on these points is likely to spur the issue of expanding flights. A year ago, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov emphasized the interest from the Russian side.
The topic is relevant and has been discussed for a long time, but there is no detailed information about negotiations with specific carriers, Maya Lomidze, executive director of the Association of Tour Operators of Russia (ATOR), told Izvestia.
— First of all, these are flights to Moscow and St. Petersburg, since Indian tourists are interested in these two capitals and it is in these cities that the greatest interest in tours to India, and not only to Goa. Flights connecting major cities of India with Yekaterinburg and other cities with millions in the Urals and the Siberian Federal District would also be in demand," she said.
All these three issues — payment solutions, visa—free regime and expansion of direct flights - will contribute to the development of bilateral tourism, Dmitry Gorin, Vice President of the Russian Union of Travel Industry (PCT), told Izvestia.
In the meantime, it is absolutely worth waiting for specific solutions in the technological field. Dmitry Bakanov, the head of Roscosmos, has already announced large—scale cooperation between Russia and India. Agreements will be reached in the field of engine building, manned space exploration, and even the creation of national orbital stations, he said. By the way, Russia played a key role in India's space activities: its first satellite, Aryabhata, was launched into orbit in 1975 by a Soviet rocket. A peaceful atom promises a powerful impetus for cooperation. Firstly, Russia is already ready to share technologies for building small nuclear power plants with India, and secondly, Rosatom Director Alexey Likhachev will bring with him a proposal for small modular reactors.
In total, the parties will sign 10 intergovernmental documents and more than 15 commercial agreements, as well as adopt a joint statement. It will outline further large-scale plans in the fields of security, economics, finance, transport, energy, education, and culture. And the state visit will not end there. Vladimir Putin and Narendra Modi will also take part in the 23rd Russian-Indian summit in New Delhi, which will bring together 150 leading representatives from the business community of the two countries.
Moscow and New Delhi against Western sanctions
It is important that the parties sign a program for the development of strategic areas of Russian-Indian economic cooperation until 2030, as this area is under intense pressure from the West. Ahead of the visit, Russian Presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov stressed that trade relations between Russia and India should not be influenced by third countries. The trade turnover has been growing in recent years, but there are also problems, in particular the trade imbalance.
Russian exports to India amount to about $65 billion, while Indian exports amount to only about $5 billion. Putin assured that he would discuss increasing imports with Modi. Moreover, negotiations on the creation of a free trade area (FTA) between India and the EAEU finally began at the end of November. The agreement may be signed as early as 2026. This will certainly facilitate trade between the two countries and provide an additional incentive for cooperation between Moscow and New Delhi. The Kremlin expressed confidence that by 2030, the volume of trade will reach $ 100 billion.
An equally sensitive issue is the supply of Russian oil. After the outbreak of the Ukrainian conflict, India became one of its largest discounted buyers, which was met with hostility in Washington, which considers New Delhi its reliable partner. As a result, on August 6, the United States imposed additional tariffs of 25% on India, and total duties on Indian imports rose to 50%. US sanctions against Lukoil and Rosneft have added even more fuel to the fire. Information about the reduction of purchases by Indian refineries began to appear in the media. However, there is no reason for alarm yet. The oil purchase and sale system in force between Russia and India responds flexibly to pressure from third countries, Dmitry Peskov noted.
— India still buys oil from Russian oil companies that are not under US sanctions. In the future, it will undoubtedly increase its purchases after the lifting of sanctions by Trump. This is mainly due to the fact that Russia is a reliable partner and supplier for India," political analyst Rakesh Bhadauria told Izvestia.
If not with sanctions, then at least with aggressive statements, the Europeans are also trying to drive a wedge between Russia and India. Just before Vladimir Putin's visit, the ambassadors of France, Germany and the United Kingdom released a joint article: "The world wants an end to the war in Ukraine, but Russia does not seem to be serious about peace." New Delhi condemned such a step by diplomats, calling unacceptable public consultations on India's relations with a third country. Ironically, two days later, quite effective negotiations between the Russian Federation and the United States took place in the Kremlin.
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Special Envoy of the President of the United States Stephen Witkoff (second from left) during a meeting, December 2, 2025
Despite external pressure, defense cooperation between Russia and India is likely to develop, especially given the current turbulent situation. It also adds to the risks and tensions in the Asia-Pacific region. For example, a number of Southeast Asian countries are already interested in Russian-Indian-made BrahMos cruise missiles. Interestingly, the Philippines, which is quite pro-American, became the first foreign customer. Malaysia and Indonesia are reportedly next in line.
— On the eve of the Russian-Indian negotiations, they are talking about possible contracts for the Su-57, the S-400, and the technological transfer of the S-500 Prometheus. Negotiations on this issue have been going on for a long time, and the market believes that they will be crowned with success," Gleb Makarevich, a junior researcher at the IMEMO RAS Center for the Indian Ocean Region, told Izvestia.
Russia and India are also defending their positions on various international platforms, for example, in the SCO, as well as in BRICS — India is assuming the presidency in this association, which will probably deepen cooperation between the two countries. By the way, Vladimir Putin and Narendra Modi will exchange views on international issues at the meeting, including cooperation in the UN, SCO, G20 and BRICS, said Yuri Ushakov.
Joint work on the future Eurasian Charter on Diversity and Multipolarity in the 21st Century could further bring the positions of Moscow and New Delhi closer. Currently, Russia and the main ideologist of the document, Belarus, are actively inviting the countries of the Eurasian continent, including India, to dialogue in order to take into account all possible approaches and positions.
— We are stimulating the discussion of potential elements of the future charter on a step-by-step basis, and we are conducting a consistent dialogue with our partners. Among them, of course, is India, which not only plays an important role in Eurasian affairs, but is also one of the global centers of power. The topic is raised not only in interstate communication, but is also discussed with the involvement of the expert community, in particular, at the annual Minsk Conference on Eurasian Security, the Russian Foreign Ministry told Izvestia.
New Delhi sent a very representative delegation to the October 28-29 conference. In general, both Russia and India will strive to strengthen their strategic partnership and develop a common approach to solving complex international problems, Bhadauria stressed.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
