Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday travelled in the same car to the destination of their bilateral meeting after the proceedings at the SCO Summit venue in Tianjin, China– a visual statement amid US President Donald Trump’s tariff onslaught against New Delhi’s oil trade with Moscow.
“After the proceedings at the SCO Summit venue, President Putin and I travelled together to the venue of our bilateral meeting. Conversations with him are always insightful,” PM Modi said in a post on X, sharing his picture with the Russian leader.
Significance Of Bilateral Meet
The timing of the meeting between Prime Minister Modi and President Putin holds significance as it comes amid the United States’ public condemnation of India’s oil trade with Russia, with President Donald Trump accusing New Delhi of funding Putin’s war in Ukraine.
Last month, he imposed 50 per cent tariffs on Indian goods bound for the US, the highest in Asia, to penalise it for those energy purchases.
Despite US pressure, India has not stopped its oil trade with Moscow and said its national interests will guide its energy import policies. New Delhi also labelled US levies as “unfair, unjustified and unreasonable”.
India and Russia have been among the steadiest of the major relationships in the world after the Second World War. New Delhi became one of the biggest Russian oil buyers since the Ukraine war broke out in 2022, and Western nations shunned energy imports from Moscow and imposed price caps on Russian crude trade. However, there is no blanket prohibition on the purchase of Russian oil if the deals meet the parameters of the Western sanctions.
The two nations are also making efforts to simplify the rupee-ruble trade mechanism, aiming to reduce reliance on the US dollar amid growing global financial complexities.
Russia’s Acknowledgement
Earlier, PM Modi met President Putin at the Tianjin summit, where the Russian leader addressed India’s role in Ukraine peace efforts. Putin said he “appreciates China and India’s efforts to resolve the crisis in Ukraine,” highlighting the growing role of Asian powers in conflict resolution, traditionally dominated by Western nations.
This is PM Modi and President Putin’s first in-person meeting since October 2024, when they met on the margins of the BRICS summit in Kazan. PM Modi last spoke on a call with Putin after the Russian leader’s summit with Trump in Alaska to seek a peace deal.