Any Indian government at this juncture would have voted and spoken exactly this way. It isn't just about the vast Indian dependence on Russian-origin military equipment. It is also about trust, asserts Shekhar Gupta.
So keen is Moscow that India buy its helicopter -- Kamov-226T -- that President Vladimir Putin personally took up the issue with PM Narendra Modi during their summit meeting last year
US-India defence cooperation must not adversely affect the India-Russia interface, which has its own strategic meaning and content, asserts Vice Admiral Premvir Das (retd).
The Obama Administration has condemned the decision of Russia and China to veto the United Nations Security Council resolution on Syria, saying "those who voted against the resolution are on the wrong side of the history."
Taking advantage of a Russian offer to sell its crude oil cheap and bear the cost of insurance and transportation, India may import as much as 2 million tonnes (mt), or roughly 15 million barrels of crude, from the sanctioned nation in 2022, Business Standard has learnt. This comes after reports that Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) bought 3 million barrels of Russian Urals from trader Vitol for May delivery. This will be on cost, insurance and freight (CIF) model, where the seller incurs the costs and pays the freight, including insurance charges.
The British Govt amended the Special License enabling Chelsea FC to sell tickets to select competitions to fans
India will soon meet Iraq and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to seek a definitive rate of discount on crude oil similar to what Russia has provided so far, sources said. Multiple officials and industry executives said Iraq, which is India's biggest oil supplier, wants to discuss the level of discounts expected by Indian refiners. India's focus on snapping up ever-increasing volumes of Russian crude oil has led to a corresponding decline in imports from the Middle East. Flows from Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE have suffered as a result.
Although the credit for acquiring the technological skill must be given to India's outstanding nuclear scientists, the decision to go nuclear was a political one that entailed clarity of vision, courage and resolve, points out Rup Narayan Das.
China also removed Finance Minister Liu Kun and appointed Lan Fo'an in his place. Liu is the third senior Cabinet minister to be replaced without any explanation.
United States President Barack Obama has said that Russia's actions are in violation of Ukraine's sovereignty and suggested that there is a diplomatic solution that would protect the interest of both Russia and Ukraine and end the worst East-West stand-off since the Cold War.
Pope Francis on Sunday condemned the "massacre" in Ukraine and said the "unacceptable armed aggression" must stop.
The Ministry further said that it is keeping an eye on the developments in Ukraine and the situation will be reassessed as per that.
Abramovich handed Chelsea director control of firm on day of Ukraine invasion - filings
Russian traders have started asking for payments in ruble for their exports to India in a move that could derail trade between the two countries which gathered pace after the war in Europe. This is because Indian importers are unable to pay in ruble. The India-Russia trade gathered pace after Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine in February this year. In the April-June quarter, India's imports from Russia were valued at $9.27 billion, up 369 per cent year on year.
Zelenskyy has put the blame on Russia and drew a chilling comparison of the new mass graves to what was discovered in Bucha, on the outskirts of the capital Kyiv.
With Western corporations, including Microsoft, AWS and Oracle, shutting down their operations in Russia, the rest of the world has become acutely aware of its dependence on a clutch of technology service providers.
Speculation about the missing Chinese Defence Minister General Li Shangfu may have been removed and detained became rife after he was conspicuously absent at the meeting of the Central Military Commission (CMC) in Beijing on Friday.
Russia's bid to host the Euro 2028 or the Euro 2032 tournaments have also been declared ineligible, the Switzerland-based governing body said.
The rouble has been falling steadily since early November and collapsed earlier this month following a spectacular decline in the price of crude oil to five-year lows.
Putin made these remarks on Thursday at a forum in Moscow organised by Russia's Agency for Strategic Initiatives (ASI).
The Reserve Bank is working with the government to thrash out a payment settlement solution for Indo-Russian trade, which is hit by the economic sanctions imposed on Moscow after it invaded Ukraine, but asserted that any such solution will be 'sensitive' to the prevailing economic blockade, the central bank said. RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das was quick to add that it is a matter that the government has to deal with first, and as far as the central bank is concerned, obviously, we will not do anything which goes against the sanctions. RBI Deputy Governor T Rabi Sankar said since the Ukraine war has disrupted trade and payments, we are discussing with all stakeholders, and at the same time, we are sensitive to the economic sanctions.
India's Manu Bhaker and Yashaswini Singh Deswal failed to make the final. The 19-year-old Bhaker, ranked No. 2, was done in by a technical glitch involving her gun after an impressive start saw her take one of the places in the top eight.
The government may soon give the green light to bilateral trade between Russia and India in their national currencies to avoid any trade disruptions, multiple people aware of the matter said. While the Department of Commerce has recommended the proposal, an announcement is likely to be made by the finance ministry after further deliberations between the Department of Economic Affairs and Department of Financial Services. "The finance ministry will take a call on how to peg the two currencies," a senior government official told Business Standard. In the past, the two nations have had rupee-rouble trade, and when such an arrangement is implemented again, it will bypass the sanctions imposed on Russia by the West.
Zelenskyy says that despite Russia's claim it is attacking only military targets, civilian sites also have been struck.
Market gauges Sensex and Nifty extended their losing streak to the sixth session on Wednesday as lingering Ukraine crisis continued to dent investor sentiment. The Sensex closed 68.62 points or 0.12 per cent lower at 57,232.06 and the Nifty ended 28.95 points or 0.12 per cent down at 17,063.25. For better part of session, both indices traded in the positive territory tracking mostly higher Asian peers as investors hoped that Western sanctions on Russia after Moscow's troop movements near Ukraine border might soften Vladimir Putin defiant tone and leave some room to avoid war. The Sensex breadth was equally divided between gains and losses.
Indicating unease over India's growing closeness with the United States, Russia on Thursday said it does not "feel comfortable" at being put on the same plane as New Delhi's "newly-acquired partners", who had earlier imposed sanctions on this country.
President Joe Biden is prepared to engage with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in any format at any place and time to prevent a war, top United States diplomat said on Sunday as he asserted that everything leading up to the actual invasion of Ukraine appears to be taking place.
Iran has complained of irregular shipments
The breakthrough phone call by Putin to Erdogan came after the Turkish strongman on Monday sent a letter to the Kremlin leader that Moscow said contained an apology.
The powerful United Nations Security Council on Monday unanimously adopted a resolution that endorses the landmark nuclear deal between Iran and six world powers.
Two of Xi Jinping's chosen officials have disappeared from view, an indication of turmoil in Xi's government, months after he installed a collection of loyalist leaders in his cabinet, observes Dr Rajaram Panda.
They are now publicly trying to redefine the goals of their invasion to be different than they were at the outset, she noted when asked about some declassified American intelligence information that Putin had bad information from his military.
Earlier on Sunday, Macron spoke with Biden and Putin on the Ukraine situation.
Russia has consistently supported Iran's right to civilian nuclear energy under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, and is building a nuclear power plant for the Islamic nation in Bushehr.
Higher discounts on crude oil offered by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to wean India away from Russian crude may soon see Indian refiners ramping up purchases from the Gulf nation, officials at multiple refiners said. They also pointed to the recent agreement on trade settlement in national currencies signed between India and the UAE as a reason for this. "While discussions are underway, the UAE has offered discounts on crude, which will be more than that of the current level of Russian discounts.
'As matters stand, Russia and Saudi Arabia, two of the world's biggest oil producers, are set for a hard landing as they didn't diversify their economies as much as they should have when the oil prices were booming.'
The United States has introduced a resolution in the UN Security Council seeking freezing of assets of Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and 11 of his aides following the last week's much-criticised presidential run-off. The resolution also asked the 15-member powerful body to impose an arms embargo against Zimbabwe and a travel ban targeting Mugabe, the central bank governor and 10 other officials.
Putin justified his decision in a speech blaming NATO for the current crisis and calling the US-led alliance an existential threat to Russia.
US officials did not announce their visit but it was Zelenskyy who revealed it in his speech on Saturday, saying that he would use this meeting to discuss the "military assistance we need."
India has substantially increased its crude oil imports from the US, with the country's share in India's crude basket hitting a record 14.3 per cent in December, commerce ministry data showed.
