PM Modi is expected to meet Putin on Friday. It will be the first face-to-face meeting between PM Modi and Putin since the war. In December last year, Putin met PM Modi during his visit to New Delhi. The Moscow-Delhi relationship dates back to the Cold War era and it has been strong ever since. This "all-weather" partnership is one of the success stories of global diplomacy.
"Russian President Putin is going to participate in the forthcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit. PM Modi is also going. We've already announced that there will be a number of meetings in Samarkand, including with PM Modi," Russian Ambassador to India Denis Alipov said on Thursday.
Recently, Prime Minister Modi said that he is keen to boost ties with Russia, even as Moscow has been ostracized from the international community following its war with Ukraine.
During an online address to the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Russia, the prime minister Modi expressed particular interest in bolstering cooperation on energy and coking coal with Russia.
SCO meet 2022: PM Modi-Vladimir Putin bilateral meeting expectations
PM Modi will discuss trade as well as sales of Russian fertilizers and mutual food supplies, the Kremlin told Reuters news agency.
India's fertiliser imports from Russia rose to $1.03 billion in April-July compared to $773.54 million in the whole of the last fiscal year to March 31, 2022, according to the Indian commerce ministry's website.
India is looking for a three-year fertiliser import deal with Russia.
Attempts to sign a long-term fertiliser import deal earlier this year were hit by the challenging geopolitical situation after Russia launched what it calls its "special military operation" in Ukraine on 24 February.
Besides, the two leaders will discuss Russian-Indian cooperation within the United Nations and G20. "A conversation on the international agenda with PM Modi will also take place, the sides will discuss issues of strategic stability, the situation in the Asia Pacific Region, and, of course, cooperation within major multilateral formats, such as the UN, the G20, and the SCO," Russian prime minister said.
Additionally, India can also leverage its time-tested bilateral relations with Russia, Iran, and the Central Asian Republics (CARs) to enhance its role within the forum.
China used India-Pakistan hostility for its hegemonic pursuits. The China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) has increased the geo-strategic, geo-economic, and security concerns of India. CPEC cuts through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and violates India's sovereignty, forcing India to distance itself from the Border Road Initiatives. Therefore, India can leverage the relationship with Russia, Iran, and CARs to challenge and checkmate the China-Pakistan axis.
How Russia has been pursuing India through various discounts
India, which rarely used to buy Russian oil, has emerged as Moscow's second-biggest oil customer after China. Refiners in India, the world's third-biggest oil importer, and consumer, have been snapping up discounted Russian oil, shunned by some western countries and companies.
Russian Ambassador said that, "India being a consumer, quite naturally is looking for the cheapest offers and Russia being deprived of its traditional markets in Europe, is looking for new markets..."
Ambassador Alipove added, “We are looking to further expand our relationship in this area by promoting the ongoing dialogue & cooperation based on long-term arrangements and agreements".
However, the Group of Seven countries is working to cap the price of Russian oil from December 5 in an attempt to cut the price Russia receives for oil.
But Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said India will carefully assess whether to support a G-7 proposal. Puri said the world economy was still adjusting to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Puri said India consumes around 5 million barrels of oil per day and this largely comes from Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates. Russia accounted for just 0.2% of India’s oil imports at the end of March, Puri said, noting that some criticized India for increasing its supply of Russian oil following the Kremlin’s invasion.
“I said the Europeans buy more in one afternoon than I do in a quarter. I’d be surprised if that is not the condition still. But yes we will buy from Russia, we will buy from wherever," Puri said.
The union minister added, "I have a moral duty to my consumer. Do I as a democratically elected government want a situation where the petrol pump runs dry? Look at what is happening in countries around India."
The EU has called on China and India to take part in the G-7 initiative to reduce the profits that Russia makes from selling oil.
The G-7 is comprised of the U.S., Canada, France, Germany, Italy, the U.K., and Japan.
Russia has vowed to take retaliatory measures over the proposal and says it will stop selling oil to countries that impose price caps on Russian energy exports.
"If this whim is implemented, Russia will simply stop selling its oil to those countries which decide to join this initiative, as simple as that. We'll stop the supply of gas. It affects Russia substantially but ultimately, it will be Europe who will feel all the pain," the Russian Ambassador added.
He added that "an ill-intended initiative... narrow-minded and unrealistic. It will definitely affect the global supply chains & consequently will increase the energy rates, galloping projection..."
