Putin's Pledge: Balancing Trade and Bolstering India Ties

Russian President Vladimir Putin announced his forthcoming visit to India in December, revealing plans to address the trade imbalance caused by India's substantial crude oil imports. These comments were made during his participation at the Valdai Forum in Sochi, a gathering of security and geopolitical experts from around the world.

Putin highlighted the historical and amicable ties between Russia and India, emphasizing that the two nations have never experienced significant interstate tensions. He called Prime Minister Narendra Modi a friend and praised the Indian government for its nationalist orientation.

To mitigate the trade imbalance, Putin proposed increasing Russian imports of Indian agricultural products and pharmaceuticals. He stressed the importance of tackling financing, logistics, and payment hurdles to unlock further economic cooperation between the two countries.