External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday called on Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow during his three-day visit to Russia.
The Minister co-chaired the 26th Session of the India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technological and Cultural Cooperation (IRIGC-TEC) and addressed the India-Russia Business Forum.
Jaishankar also held talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and reviewed the bilateral agenda while exchanging views on regional and global developments.
Addressing a joint press conference with Lavrov, Jaishankar responded to questions on the US decision to impose 25 per cent tariffs on Indian goods over purchase of Russian oil. He said China is the largest purchaser of Russian oil, while the European Union is the biggest buyer of LNG, and termed the move to single out India as perplexing. He noted that India also buys oil from the US, with volumes increasing in recent years.
On bilateral trade, Jaishankar underlined the need to address the trade imbalance and expand cooperation in a balanced and sustainable manner. He said enhancing India’s exports to Russia in areas such as agriculture, pharmaceuticals and textiles would help correct the imbalance.
The two leaders also discussed energy cooperation, with Jaishankar stating that sustaining trade and investments in the sector was important.
On regional developments, Jaishankar and Lavrov exchanged views on Ukraine, West Asia, the Middle East and Afghanistan. He reiterated that India’s approach continues to focus on dialogue and diplomacy as the way to resolve conflicts.
Jaishankar also said that defence and military-technical cooperation between the two countries remains strong, and that Russia supports India’s ‘Make in India’ initiative through joint production and technology transfer.
-ANI
