Putin's State visit will centre on fixing the huge India-Russia trade imbalance, with both sides pushing to lower duties, ease non-tariff barriers, and seal a landmark mobility pact to send more Indian workers to Russia.
Russia, being bogged down by the Ukraine war and prioritising the requirements of its own armed forces, along with India's consistent diversification policy, will remain a major challenge to the bilateral partnership, note Harsh V Pant and Aleksei Zakharov.
India is set to host the World Para Athletics Grand Prix, featuring athletes from eight nations competing in various track and field events. The event provides a crucial platform for both established and emerging para-athletes.
India and Russia have called for an uncompromising global fight against terrorism without hidden agendas and double standards. Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted that the menace is a direct attack on the values of humanity.
India and Russia are expected to sign a bilateral mobility agreement during President Vladimir Putin's visit to New Delhi, establishing a framework for legal migration, worker protection, and expansion of skilled Indian manpower in Russia.
In the context of India's energy ties with Russia, Putin said certain "actors" dislike New Delhi's growing role in international markets in view of its close relations with Moscow and these elements are aiming to constrain India's influence for political reasons by imposing "artificial obstacles".
India and Russia are expected to unveil a major nuclear energy partnership during Vladimir Putin's visit, potentially involving Russian small modular reactors and expanded cooperation as India pushes toward its 100-GW nuclear goal by 2047.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi greeted Russian President Vladimir Putin on his birthday and conveyed that he was looking forward to welcoming him in India for the upcoming India-Russia annual summit.
India joined Russia, China, and other nations in opposing the deployment of foreign military infrastructure in Afghanistan during 'Moscow Format' talks. The discussions focused on bringing prosperity and development to Afghanistan, with participants emphasizing the need to eliminate terrorism and integrate Afghanistan into regional connectivity.
India and Russia have agreed to jointly produce a twin-engine narrow-body passenger aircraft for short-haul flights, marking a significant step in their strategic ties. Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) and Russia's Public Joint Stock Company United Aircraft Corporation (PJSC-UAC) have signed an agreement for the production of SJ-100 aircraft in India.
India and Russia are set to expand their defence cooperation, with India expressing interest in procuring additional S-400 missile systems. Discussions took place ahead of the India-Russia annual summit.
One key development is the direct cargo connection between Chennai and Vladivostok, a crucial Russian port on the Northern Sea Route.
A group in Varanasi organized an 'India-Russia Friendship March' to welcome Russian President Vladimir Putin ahead of his visit to India for the annual summit with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The march highlighted the strong ties between the two nations and expressed hope for strengthened cooperation and global peace.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss ways to further expand India-Russia ties, following talks with Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov focusing on trade.
Russia has a "special mechanism" to confront any challenge arising out of the US slapping punitive measures against India for its procurement of Russian crude oil, Russian charge d'affaires Roman Babushkin said on Wednesday.
"Presented a copy of the Gita in Russian to President Putin. The teachings of the Gita give inspiration to millions across the world," PM Modi said in a post on X.
India and Russia have solidified a five-year plan to enhance their economic and trade partnership, while also addressing the ongoing conflict in Ukraine and the threat of terrorism.
The Congress on Friday said that the leaders of the opposition, Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi, were not invited to the banquet, and took a swipe at Tharoor for accepting the invite.
On President Putin's two-day trip to India, Jaishankar said for a "big" and "rising" country like India, it is important to maintain good cooperation with as many important players as possible in the world in line with freedom of choice.
On the table are additional batches of S-400 surface-to-air missile systems from Russia, which India used with immense success during Operation Sindoor. India could buy at least two squadrons of Su-57 fighter jets plus joint production of S-500 air defence systems.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi strongly supported efforts to end the war in Ukraine and conveyed to Russian President Vladimir Putin that India will stand shoulder-to-shoulder in all peace efforts to find an amicable solution to the conflict.
Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in New Delhi for a two-day visit focused on strengthening ties with India, including defense cooperation and trade, amidst a changing geopolitical landscape.
Russian President Vladimir Putin attended dinner hosted in his honour by President Droupadi Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Friday evening.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will host Russian President Vladimir Putin for a private dinner and summit, focusing on defence, trade, and geopolitical issues, including the Ukraine conflict and the impact of US sanctions.
The Russians have termed Putin's visit to India, his first to this country since the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war, as 'Druzhba Dosti', which means 'friendship' in Russian and Hindi respectively.
China has reacted positively to Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit to India, emphasizing the importance of trilateral ties between China, Russia, and India for regional and global peace and stability.
India and Russia have agreed to encourage joint manufacturing of military hardware and spare parts in India, aiming to improve maintenance of Russian-origin defence equipment and boost overall bilateral defence cooperation.
Russian President Vladimir Putin will make a two-day visit to India from December 4 to hold annual summit talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi that is expected to produce a plethora of significant outcomes, including in the defence sphere, to further solidify the bilateral strategic ties.
Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit to India this week aims to secure energy supplies, stabilise defence deliveries and ensure bilateral trade continues smoothly despite strong Western sanctions, GTRI said on Tuesday.
The Russian agencies concerned are carrying out studies to determine the level of investments they will have to make to manufacture the aircraft in India, defence sources said.
However, these are understood to be exploratory talks, with an agreement unlikely to be formalised during the current visit.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi alleges the government discourages foreign dignitaries from meeting the Leader of the Opposition due to insecurity, breaking established traditions.
The enduring relationship between the two countries have survived the disintegration of the erstwhile USSR in 1991, the end of the Cold War and the regime change in both countries, points out Rup Narayan Das.
'Don't look at Russia only as a place to earn quickly and then leave.' 'Try to build experience in serious companies, skills and certifications that will serve you anywhere in the world.'
The relations between New Delhi and Washington are on a downturn after Trump doubled tariffs on Indian goods to a whopping 50 per cent, including a 25 per cent additional duties for India's purchase of Russian crude oil.
The Indian government has expressed its disagreement with the IMF staff's 'baseline' assumption that the 50 per cent US tariffs on its goods exports 'would remain in place indefinitely', based on which the staff pegged the country's GDP growth at 6.6 per cent this year, and pared its 2026-27 projection by 20 basis points to 6.2 per cent.
United States President Donald Trump once again mounted a sharp attack on India and Russia for their close ties and said that the two countries can take their 'dead economies down together'.
United States President Donald Trump on Tuesday said India has not been a good trading partner and announced that he will raise the tariffs on New Delhi 'very substantially' over the next 24 hours because it is buying Russian oil.
Sanctioning Russian oil would have led to a sharp surge in oil prices to above $80 per barrel levels, which would impact pump prices in the US ahead of midterm elections next year.
The Indian government is dealing with the matter having in mind the national interests of this country in the first place, he said.