22nd INDIA-RUSSIA ANNUAL SUMMIT
At 22nd Annual Summit, the two nations decided to increase their bilateral trade to $100 billion by 2030. The use of national currencies to get around Western sanctions is part of this agreement.
Key highlights
Economic Cooperation:
New Trade Target: USD 100 billion by 2030, up from USD 30 billion by 2025.
Reason for Increase: Driven by India's discounted imports of Russian crude oil due to Western sanctions on Russia.
Programme-2030: Comprehensive program to be coordinated by the India-Russia Intergovernmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technical and Cultural Cooperation (IRIGC-TEC).
Free Trade Agreements: Negotiations with the Eurasian Economic Union on goods; exploring agreements on services and investments.
Investment Facilitation: Russian businesses to participate in "Make in India" and "Atmanirbhar Bharat"; Indian companies to invest in Russia.
Agreed to explore the possibility for further increasing supply of coking coal to India, and the opportunities of exporting anthracite coal from Russia to India.
Defence and Technology:
Cooperation Shift: Moving from buyer-seller to joint research, development, and production of advanced defence technology.
Joint Manufacturing: Encouraging manufacturing of spare parts and components in India; setting up joint ventures for Indian Armed Forces and exports.
New Working Group: To be established for Technological Cooperation under the Intergovernmental Commission on Military and Military Technical Cooperation (IRIGC-M&MTC).
Military Recruitment: Putin agreed to allow Indian recruits in the Russian military to return to India if desired.
RELOS Agreement: The long-awaited Reciprocal Exchange of Logistics Agreement was not signed; it would have benefited the Indian Navy.
Cooperation in Space:
Both the countries welcomed the enhanced partnership between the Indian Space Research Organization and the Russian State Space Corporation "Roscosmos” in the use of outer space for peaceful purposes, including in the human spaceflight programs, satellite navigation and planetary exploration
Transport and Connectivity:
Chennai-Vladivostok Corridor: Sea link to reduce transportation time to Russia by 40%.
INSTC: Multi-modal route connecting the Indian Ocean to Northern Europe via Iran and Russia.
Infrastructure and Efficiency: Aiming to increase capacity and use the Northern Sea Route to enhance connectivity.
International Cooperation:
Russia supports India’s permanent membership in a reformed UNSC.
India supports Russia’s 2024 BRICS Chairship theme of "Strengthening Multilateralism for Just Global Development and Security."
Emphasis on cooperation in UN, G20, BRICS, and SCO.
India anticipates Russia joining the ISA, CDRI, and IBCA.
Bilateral ties between India and Russia:
Long-standing Strategic Partnership:
India and Russia have maintained a strong strategic partnership since the Cold War era.
The "Declaration on the India-Russia Strategic Partnership" was signed in 2000, enhancing cooperation across politics, security, defense, trade, and culture.
In 2010, the partnership was upgraded to a "Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership."
Robust Defense Cooperation:
Russia is India’s largest defense supplier, accounting for approximately 68% of India’s military hardware imports as of 2017.
Both countries have an annual Inter-Governmental Commission on Military-Technical Cooperation.
Major defense collaborations include the MiG-21, Su-30 aircraft, and the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant.
Economic and Trade Relations:
Russia is India’s 7th largest trading partner, with bilateral trade reaching $45 billion, exceeding the target of $30 billion by 2025.
Economic cooperation spans energy, nuclear energy, and the North-South Transport Corridor.
Russia plays a significant role in India's energy security through investments in the oil and gas sectors.
As per figures of Department of Commerce, in FY 2023-24, bilateral trade has reached an all-time high of $ 65.70 billion.
The bilateral relationship has remained strong and stable over more than 75 years. The India-Russia partnership has been among the steadiest of the major relationships in the world in contemporary era with a shared commitment to a multipolar world and continues to expand beyond the traditional areas of military, nuclear and space cooperation.
