CNN
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Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Russia on Monday for his first visit since Moscow began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, a sign that the two countries remain closely linked despite the Kremlin’s increasing dependence on China.
During his two-day visit, Modi is expected to attend a private dinner hosted by Vladimir Putin and hold talks with the Russian president, according to Indian External Affairs Ministry spokesman Randhir Jaiswal.
The summit will “provide an opportunity for the two leaders to discuss the entire spectrum of bilateral issues,” Jaiswal told reporters in New Delhi last week, adding that Modi and Putin would “also exchange their perspectives on regional and global developments of mutual interest.”
India remains heavily dependent on the Kremlin for military hardware and has increased its purchases of Russian crude oil at low prices, providing Putin with a financial lifeline as it faces looming isolation from the West.
Trade between the two countries reached nearly $65 billion in 2023-24, largely due to strong energy cooperation, but most of that total went to Russia, Jaiswal said.
Reducing the trade deficit will be a “priority issue” in Modi’s talks with Putin, he added.
Modi last met Putin on the sidelines of the 2022 SCO meeting in Uzbekistan and told the Russian president: “Now is not the time for war.”
But while India called for a cessation of hostilities in Ukraine and a restoration of peace, it abstained from voting on all resolutions on Ukraine at the United Nations and did not condemn the Russian invasion.
“I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and exchanging perspectives on various regional and global issues,” Modi said in a statement from his office before leaving for Russia. “We want to play a supporting role for a peaceful and stable region.”
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said after Russia’s deadly attacks on Ukraine on Monday that it was “a huge disappointment and a devastating blow to peace efforts to see the leader of the world’s largest democracy embracing the world’s bloodiest criminal in Moscow on such a day.”
After Modi’s arrival, Putin showed the Indian president around his residence in Novo-Ogaryovo in the Moscow region. They greeted each other with a hug, chatted over a cup of tea and drove around in an electric vehicle. Putin also showed Modi the stables and they watched a horse show.
The trip is Modi’s first bilateral visit since he won his third consecutive term in a general election last month. It is seen as a rare break with tradition for an Indian leader who usually travels to neighboring Bhutan, Sri Lanka and the Maldives.
The visit also comes at a time when Russia is moving ever closer to China, which may be uncomfortable for New Delhi given the long-simmering border dispute with Beijing in the Himalayan region.
Modi’s trip follows Putin’s return from Kazakhstan, where the Russian president attended the annual summit of heads of state and government of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), a bloc of Eurasian countries led by China and Russia, last week. Modi claimed that relations between Moscow and Beijing were currently experiencing “the best period in their history.”
For India, this burgeoning relationship is “a cause for great concern,” said Nandan Unnikrishnan of the Observer Research Foundation in New Delhi.
“That is one of the reasons why Mr Modi is making this trip, because traditionally the Soviet Union and later Russia have been a balancing factor in our relations with China, which have not been the best since the late 1950s,” he said.
Although India is a member of the SCO, Modi was conspicuously absent from the meeting in Kazakhstan, an indication to some analysts that the leader of the world’s largest democracy does not view the bloc as an effective channel through which New Delhi can pursue its interests.
Modi’s visit to Russia is also widely seen as the latest setback in Western leaders’ efforts to sideline Putin.
Although New Delhi is undermining Western sanctions by buying large quantities of Russian oil, the country remains close to the United States, a key partner, as both countries are concerned about China’s assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific region.
Modi met US President Joe Biden during a state visit to Washington in June last year, further cementing the India-US partnership in defence, trade and technology. Modi also addressed Congress during the visit, an honour usually reserved for close US allies and partners, and attended a lavish state dinner. India is a member of the Quad security grouping along with the US, Japan and Australia.
Later that year, Putin did not attend the G20 summit in New Delhi, where leaders issued a joint statement criticising Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
Following his trip to Russia, Modi will visit Austria, according to his office. This will be the Indian President’s first visit to this European country.
