Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi meets Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during their meeting at the Taj Exotic Hotel on October 15, 2016 in Benaulim, Goa, India.

Mikhail Svetlov | Getty Images News | Getty Images

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is due to meet President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on Monday, marking his first visit to the Kremlin since the invasion of Ukraine.

Their meeting is significant because it is the Indian prime minister's first bilateral trip abroad since he was re-elected for a rare third term in June.

The two leaders are expected to strengthen the development of “traditionally friendly relations between Russia and India,” as well as discuss “topical issues on international and regional agendas,” he added. The Kremlin said last week.

The meeting will provide an opportunity for the two sides to discuss a range of bilateral issues ranging from defence and trade to investment ties and energy cooperation, Indian External Affairs Minister Vinay Kwatra said. during a press briefing Friday.

On today's agenda

Russia and India will also assess the status of bilateral engagements in groupings such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, the Group of 20, the BRICS bloc of developing countries, the United Nations and the East Asia Summit, Kwatra said.

“The issue of early release of Indian nationals who were deceived into serving in the Russian army should also figure in the discussions,” Kwatra added.

Since March, India has has called for the release of its nationals, who were allegedly “duped” into serving in the Russian military, after the uncovering of what the South Asian nation called a “major human trafficking ring”.

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Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 triggered a series of sanctions from the Group of 7 and other countries as world leaders sought to cut off or limit Moscow’s ability to finance the war. The Kremlin insisted on calling the invasion a “special military operation.”

India has refrained from direct criticism of Putin, butmaintained a neutral position on Russia's invasion of Ukrainewhile urging both sides to end the war. New Delhi, however, condemned the massacre of civilians at the start of the conflict in Ukraine, but did not blame Russia.

Modi's visit to the Kremlin follows his meeting with G7 leaders in Italy last month, where the bloc of industrialized nations comprising the United States, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United Kingdom agreedfinance Ukraine's war against Russiawith profits from the Kremlin's frozen assets.

Historical ties between India and Russia

India and Russia haveshared a long-standing security cooperation partnership Since the Cold War era, New Delhi's armed forces have been heavily dependent on Moscow for their military equipment.

Modi’s last visit to Russia was in 2019, when he traveled to the far eastern port of Vladivostok for an economic forum. The two last met in person in 2022 at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization in Uzbekistan, where Modi told the Russian president that we were not in a time of war but stopped short of condemning his actions in Ukraine.

Russia, like the United States, has its own place in India's foreign policy, said former Indian External Affairs Minister Kanwal Sibal in a recent post on social media platform X.

“Neither India nor the South considers Putin an international pariah,” the former ambassador to Russia added.

India's bilateral trade with Russia increased by 33% in the financial year ended March 2024, reaching an all-time high of $65.7 billionHowever, trade remains unbalanced, Kwatra stressed.

India's exports to Russia stood at $4.26 billion, while imports from the Kremlin stood at nearly $61.44 billion, official data showed.

After his two-day visit to Russia, Modi will travel to Vienna, Austria on Tuesday, in what would be the first visit by an Indian prime minister in 41 years.

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