Russia assures India on energy, fertiliser supplies amid West Asia crisis

Moscow,UPDATED: Aug 24, 2026 22:46 IST

Russia on Monday assured India of uninterrupted supplies of energy and fertilisers despite disruption caused by the West Asia crisis, as External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met President Vladimir Putin in Moscow and held talks with senior Russian leaders.

Jaishankar, on a two-day visit, also co-chaired with First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov the 27th meeting of the India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technological and Cultural Cooperation. The meetings come ahead of Putin's expected visit to New Delhi for the BRICS leaders' summit on September 12-13 and focused on deepening economic ties as India flagged a sharp rise in the trade imbalance.

In his meeting with Jaishankar, Putin assured India of continued supplies of key commodities. "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 by state-run TASS news agency. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov was among the top officials present at the meeting.

Jaishankar conveyed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's greetings and a personal communication to Putin. "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." He also said, "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," and added that the IRIGC-TEC meeting held earlier in the day had a "good report" on economic cooperation.

At the opening of the IRIGC-TEC meeting, Jaishankar said trade between India and Russia had increased four-fold in five years, from around USD 13 billion in 2021-22 to nearly USD 60 billion in 2025-26. He, however, said the trade imbalance had widened 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.

He also called for greater focus on implementation and outcomes in the commission's work, and for stronger engagement with businesses. Governments could create enabling frameworks, he said, but businesses were the ones that "trade, invest, innovate and create jobs". Jaishankar said, "The complicated international scenario will constantly throw up fresh ideas because we are all focused on de-risking and diversifying." He added that economic demands and technology requirements would add to this, and said a fundamental complementarity remained underexplored. "The India-Russia partnership has consistently demonstrated resilience and adaptability," he said. "Even amidst a complex international landscape, our engagement has continued to deepen, reflecting the mutual interest and confidence that define our bilateral partnership."

After meeting Putin, Jaishankar said on X that he was pleased to call on the Russian president. "Handed over a personal message from Prime Minister @narendramodi. Briefed him (Putin) on the deliberation held under the 27th IRIGC-TEC, reviewing our cooperation across a wide range of domains. Value his guidance in that regard. Also discussed regional and global issues of importance," he said. Putin said trade between the two countries 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, adding, according to TASS, that cooperation was under way in virtually all areas, including between the two governments, parliaments and businesses.

The meetings in Moscow centred on maintaining Russian supplies of energy and fertilisers to India, reviewing fast-growing trade, addressing the widening trade gap, and preparing for upcoming high-level engagements, including the BRICS summit in New Delhi.

With PTI Inputs

- Ends