🔗 Share this article

In a unambiguous statement to Western nations, President Vladimir Putin stated to Prime Minister Narendra Modi that Russia remains committed to maintain “continuous” supplies of crude oil to India. The announcement came when Putin and Modi met in Delhi and declared their relationship were “resilient to foreign coercion.”

A Message Directed at the Western Countries

Putin's comments, issued after the annual summit, was widely seen to be a direct challenge at Washington, who have sought to compel New Delhi into curtailing its close ties with Moscow. This comes follows recent American measures, such as the introduction of trade penalties targeting New Delhi over its purchase of Russian oil.

“Moscow remains a trustworthy source of energy resources and anything needed for the development of India’s economy,” Putin said. “Moscow stands willing to persist in securing the uninterrupted supply of energy for the rapidly growing Indian economy.”

Prime Minister Modi, without naming energy specifically, reinforced the theme by saying that “a stable energy base has been a strong and important pillar of the Indo-Russian alliance.”

Challenging US Interference

Before the meeting, via a television interview, Putin had challenged American pressure regarding India's energy purchases. The president questioned, “Should America can claim the privilege to buy our atomic materials, how can you deny India claim the identical right?”

This trip represented his maiden journey to India after the onset of the war in Ukraine, and Moscow and Delhi engaged in a visible effort to demonstrate that the personal rapport between the two leaders persisted strongly.

A Warm Reception

In a unusual step, Prime Minister Modi personally greeted Putin as he disembarked. They exchanged a hearty embrace like longtime companions before having a private dinner the night before the summit.

He referred to India's partnership with Russia as “a beacon” and noted it was “based on reciprocal esteem and strong faith.”

Expanding Strategic Ties

Friday's talks yielded a number of important deals in the fields of defence and economic cooperation. A major outcome was the completion of an economic cooperation programme extending until 2030, which aims to increase twofold bilateral trade to a hundred billion USD each year by the target year.

The leaders also vowed to recalibrate their military partnership. Even as Russia is still India's primary source of weapons, its share has declined over the past decade as India works to widen its supply base.

Their communique emphasized cooperation in the co-development of cutting-edge defence platforms, even if explicit details of purchases such as the Sukhoi Su-57 were left out.

In conclusion, both nations affirmed that during the “ongoing challenging, strained, and uncertain global landscape, the Indo-Russian partnership continue to be resilient to external pressure.”