Talks may focus on alternative ways to balance oil equation: Ex-diplomat on PM Modi, Putin meeting

New Delhi [India], December 4 : Former Indian diplomat Mahesh Sachdev on Thursday stated that during Russian President Vladimir Putin's upcoming visit to India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Putin are likely to explore alternative ways to maintain the crucial oil trade dynamics between the two nations amid growing Western pressure, while pushing bilateral trade towards the ambitious USD 100 billion target by 2030.

Speaking ahead of Putin's two-day state visit to India, Sachdev highlighted that such summits provide an opportunity to make strategic decisions and chart a new direction for bilateral ties.

"These summits take strategic decisions and set a new direction for the relationship at the highest level... Only two days ago, President Putin had a five-hour-long meeting at the Kremlin with President Trump's envoy and his son-in-law. So those issues will be in the backdrop of this summit," Sachdev said.

"The two leaders would perhaps be working on how to state this oil equation through other means... The two sides seem to have decided to raise trade to USD 100 billion by 2030, irrespective of the oil equation," he added.

The former diplomat's comment comes ahead of the Russian President's state visit to the country, the first time since the Ukraine conflict began in 2022. The last time he visited the country was in December 2021.

Putin is set to arrive in New Delhi on Thursday evening on a two-day state visit and will also take part in the 23rd India-Russia Annual Summit.

The oil and energy trade between India and Russia has seen a significant hit as the peace talks led by the US, between Moscow and Kyiv, take centre stage, with Washington imposing an additional 50 per cent tariff on Indian imports in August due to its purchase of Russian oil, which the US claims fuels Moscow's war efforts in Ukraine.

Sachdev further added that the two leaders will also discuss broader geopolitics including the situation in Europe, the dynamics among superpowers such as China and the United States, and developments in South Asia.

"The two would have an occasion to discuss the geopolitics not only of Europe but also among the superpowers: China, Russia, and the United States, as well as the situation in South Asia," he stated.

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