Putin and Modi discuss trade, peace in New Delhi summit

5/12/2025 16:06

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi began summit talks in New Delhi on Friday, as New Delhi rolled out the red carpet for the Russian leader and Modi told him India supported peace efforts in Ukraine.



Putin is on his first visit to India in four years, aiming to boost trade with the top buyer of Russia's arms and seaborne oil as Western sanctions squeeze their decades-old ties. The visit comes at a time when New Delhi is engaged in talks with the U.S. for a trade deal to cut punitive tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump on its goods over India's Russian oil purchases.



Moscow has been India's top arms supplier for decades and has said that it wants to import more Indian goods in an effort to grow trade to $100 billion by 2030 that so far has been skewed in its favour due to New Delhi's energy imports.



Since European countries cut their reliance on Russian energy after Russia invaded Ukraine nearly four years ago, India ramped up its purchases of discounted Russian crude, only to reduce them under pressure from U.S. tariffs and sanctions this year.