MOSCOW: India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached Moscow on Monday for a two-day official visit, his first since Russia sent forces into Ukraine.
The Russian policy on Ukraine has complicated the ties between the longtime partners and pushed Russia closer to China.
Modi is expected to have dinner with Russian President Vladimir Putin, followed by Kremlin talks Tuesday. Modi last visited Russia in 2019, when he participated in a forum in the far eastern port of Vladivostok and met with Putin. They also held a meeting at a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization bloc in September 2022 in Uzbekistan.
Russia has had strong relations with India since the Cold War, and New Delhi’s importance as a key trading partner has grown since the Kremlin sent forces into Ukraine in February 2022.
China and India have become key importers of Russian oil following sanctions imposed by the United States and its allies that closed most Western markets off to Russian exports. According to experts India receives more than 40 percent of its oil imports from Russia.
India under Modi has not condemned Russia’s military action in Ukraine while stressing the need for a peaceful settlement. Modi did not attend last week’s Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit in Kazakhstan.
Analysts say Modi is expected to seek to continue close ties with Russia, which is also a major defense supplier for India. Though Moscow’s arms industries mostly serve the Russian military’s requirements amid the fighting in Ukraine, India is diversifying its defense procurements, purchasing more from the U.S., France, Italy and Israel.
India has neither denounced nor condoned Russia’s military operation in Ukraine and has called for talks to end the fighting.
After an arrest warrant was issued in 2023 by the International Criminal Court for Putin’s actions in Ukraine, his foreign travel has been scant in recent years, so Modi’s visit could help the Russian leader boost his clout.
