India, Russia push trade, energy and fertiliser ties ahead of BRICS summit

Moscow,UPDATED: Aug 24, 2026 21:48 IST

India and Russia on Monday decided to further expand cooperation in trade, energy and fertiliser supplies as External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met Russian President Vladimir Putin and held talks with senior Russian leaders in Moscow. Jaishankar, on a two-day visit, also co-chaired the 27th meeting of the India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technological and Cultural Cooperation with First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov.

The meetings came ahead of Putin's expected visit to New Delhi for the BRICS leaders' summit on September 12-13 and focused on deepening economic engagement and expanding cooperation across sectors. Jaishankar said the commission meeting had given a "good report" on economic ties, while both sides also discussed regional and global issues.

In his meeting with Putin, Jaishankar conveyed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's greetings and a personal communication to the Russian president. "Prime Minister Modi looks forward to meeting you at the SCO summit, then welcoming you in India for the BRICS Summit, and in due course, as per your mutual convenience, having the annual summit," he said. "So, we have, excellency, I think a very strong picture of cooperation." Jaishankar added, "I think our economic cooperation, trade, energy, fertilisers, nuclear, other dimensions as well - I would be pleased to speak about it in detail. Overall, I think our economic cooperation has grown very significantly." Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was among the top officials present at the meeting.

According to the state-run TASS news agency, Putin told Jaishankar that Russia was increasing fertiliser supplies to India and was ready to continue doing so. "We are doing everything we can to fully meet the needs of Indian farmers and the agricultural sector, increasing these supplies and standing ready to continue doing so," Putin was quoted as saying. Putin also said trade between Russia and India had risen this year after a slight decline last year. "I am pleased to note that our trade has increased this year. It declined slightly last year, but it is growing this year," he said. He said Jaishankar's visit underlined the level of relations built over decades and that cooperation was underway in virtually all areas, including between the two governments, parliaments and businesses.

In his opening remarks at the IRIGC meeting, Jaishankar said bilateral trade had increased four-fold in five years, from around USD 13 billion in 2021-22 to nearly USD 60 billion in 2025-26. He said the rapid expansion had also led to a sharp widening of the trade imbalance, from USD 6.6 billion to over USD 50 billion. "Addressing this imbalance is today one of our foremost priorities," he said. Jaishankar said progress on market access, removal of tariff and non-tariff barriers, stronger payment mechanisms and deeper business-to-business engagement would be critical to correcting the imbalance and meeting the shared target of USD 100 billion in bilateral trade by 2030.

Jaishankar also called for greater focus on implementation and outcomes in the commission's work and urged stronger engagement with businesses. He said governments could create enabling frameworks, but businesses were the ones that "trade, invest, innovate and create jobs". He also stressed the need to keep updating the view of opportunities and exploring new areas of cooperation. "The complicated international scenario will constantly throw up fresh ideas because we are all focussed on de-risking and diversifying," he said. "Economic demands and technology requirements will add to this mix. A fundamental complementarity still remains underexplored. But even the last few years have seen progress in realising this potential, and we must take that forward." He added, "The India-Russia partnership has consistently demonstrated resilience and adaptability. Even amidst a complex international landscape, our engagement has continued to deepen, reflecting the mutual interest and confidence that define our bilateral partnership."

After the meeting, Jaishankar said in a post on X that he was pleased to call on Putin and had handed over a personal message from Modi. He said he had briefed the Russian president on the deliberations at the 27th IRIGC-TEC and reviewed cooperation across a wide range of domains. The visit underlined the push by both countries to expand trade and strengthen cooperation in key sectors, while also addressing imbalances in the economic relationship.

With PTI Inputs

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