TIANJIN, China (BN24) — Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin met on the sidelines of a regional summit in China on Monday in a show of deepening ties as New Delhi’s relations with Washington are strained over the purchase of Russian oil.
The two leaders held talks after attending the key session of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization gathering in the port city of Tianjin, where discussions focused on regional stability, bilateral trade and energy cooperation.
Modi termed the partnership with Moscow as “special and privileged” in his opening remarks. Putin addressed Modi as a “dear friend” and described Russia’s ties with India as special, friendly and trusting.
“Russia and India have maintained special relations for decades. Friendly, trusting. This is the foundation for the development of our relations in the future,” Putin said. “These relations are absolutely non-partisan in nature, supported by the overwhelming majority of the peoples of our countries.”
Putin plans to travel to India in December for the 23rd India-Russia annual summit, according to his foreign affairs adviser, Yuri Ushakov.
Modi used the SCO meeting to welcome peace initiatives aimed at halting the conflict between Russia and Ukraine and called on stakeholders to move forward constructively.
“To end the conflict soonest and establish peace permanently, we need to find out a way. It’s a call of the entire humanity,” Modi said.
Russian state media reported that before the formal dialogue, Putin and Modi spoke one-on-one for almost an hour in an Aurus, a high-end, Russian-made limousine that Putin regularly brings on foreign trips.
Before the leaders lined up for a group photo, Modi was seen clasping Putin’s hand with the enthusiasm of an old friend, bursting into his trademark hearty laughter. Putin grinned and chuckled, while Chinese President Xi Jinping gave a measured smile. The trio chatted animatedly for a few seconds.
Modi met Xi ahead of the summit’s opening Sunday, and the two leaders pledged to resolve their border differences and bolster cooperation.
Monday’s bilateral meeting between Modi and Putin carried added significance coming days after U.S. President Donald Trump imposed an additional 25% tariffs on Indian imports, raising total duties to 50%, in retaliation for India’s continued purchases of discounted Russian oil.
Washington has repeatedly warned New Delhi against buying Russian crude, saying it partly keeps Moscow’s revenues flowing to fund the Ukraine war. India has defended its imports as essential for meeting the energy needs of 1.4 billion people.
Analysts said Trump’s steep tariffs and the White House’s general approach have inadvertently recalibrated a process whereby New Delhi is seeking closer cooperation with China and Russia.
“While India-China reengagements started much before Trump, his policies are accelerating a process whereby India seems to be working much more closely with China and Russia to push back against economic unilateralism it is witnessing from the U.S.,” said Harsh Pant, vice president of foreign policy at the New Delhi-based Observer Research Foundation think tank.
Ashok Malik, partner and chair of India practice at the U.S.-based Asia Group advisory firm, said a “calibrated India-China economic reengagement was in the works anyways,” but it has gained heightened significance due to Trump’s tariffs.
“Russia too has sensed the political and optical opportunity of putting the three countries in the same frame,” he said.
Modi traveled to Russia twice last year. The first was a visit to Moscow for talks with Putin in July, his first trip to Russia since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine by Kremlin forces in February 2022. He then traveled to Kazan in October for the BRICS bloc summit of developing economies.
Russia has maintained strong ties with India since the Cold War, and New Delhi’s importance as a key trading partner has grown since the war between Moscow and Ukraine began.
China and India have become key buyers of Russian oil after the West shunned Russian exports to punish Moscow.
India historically bought most of its crude from the Middle East, but the world’s third-largest crude importer after China and the U.S. has started buying Russian oil available at discounted rates. Russia now accounts for around 37% of India’s total oil imports, according to analysts and Indian officials.
Trade between India and Russia has sharply increased in recent years, reaching a record $68.7 billion in the 2024-25 financial year during strong energy cooperation. Imports from Russia reached around $64 billion and exports from India totaled about $5 billion, according to Indian government data.
India’s financial year runs from April to March. The two nations aspire to increase trade to $100 billion by 2030.
Modi’s meeting with Putin underscored New Delhi’s stance that India prizes its old and reliable strategic partners and has sufficient strategic autonomy in its foreign policy to maintain and strengthen its multi-dimensional partnerships, said Sreeram Sundar Chaulia, an international affairs expert at New Delhi’s Jindal School of International Affairs.
At the same time, the Indian government hopes the present difficulties between India and the U.S. represent a temporary situation, Chaulia said.
“Then, India can return happily to having the Russian cake and eating the American pie as part of its multi-alignment strategy,” Chaulia said.
The meeting highlights India’s balancing act between maintaining strategic partnerships with Russia while managing tensions with the United States over energy imports and trade policies.
Russia’s relationship with India has deepened significantly since Western sanctions were imposed following the Ukraine invasion, with energy cooperation becoming a cornerstone of bilateral ties despite international pressure on New Delhi to reduce its Russian oil purchases.
