Moscow, New Delhi seek to boost Indian exports to Russia

NEW DELHI: India and Russia said on Thursday (Dec 4) that they wanted to boost their trade and expand the number of items they transact in, hours before Russian President Vladimir Putin lands in New Delhi on a state visit. 

Putin starts a two-day visit to India on Thursday, his first in four years, seeking to boost sales of Russian oil, missile systems and fighter jets and expand business ties between the two countries beyond energy and defence equipment amid United States pressure on the South Asian nation to move away from Moscow.

India and Russia aim to raise two-way trade to US$100 billion by 2030, after trade rose more than fivefold from about US$13 billion in 2021 to near US$69 billion in 2024-2025, almost entirely driven by India’s energy imports.

Bilateral trade eased to US$28.25 billion from April to August 2025, reflecting a decline in crude oil imports following punitive tariffs on Indian goods and sanctions imposed by Washington.

Russia wants to import more Indian goods to balance bilateral trade, which is currently heavily skewed towards energy, Deputy Kremlin Chief of Staff Maxim Oreshkin told a business conference in New Delhi.

"The Russian delegation and business representatives have arrived with a very specific goal ... we have come for Indian goods and services. We want to significantly increase their purchases," Oreshkin said.

"This is not a momentary story, but a strategic choice in developing relations" between the two countries, he said, adding that India's share in Russian imports does not exceed 2 per cent.

Oreshkin mentioned consumer goods, food and agricultural products, medicines, telecommunication equipment, IT services and spare parts for industrial machinery as possible sectors for an increase in imports.

Indian trade minister Piyush Goyal said that New Delhi wants to diversify its exports to Russia and increase sales of automobiles, electronics goods, data processing equipment, heavy machinery, industrial components, textiles and food products.

“Russia has a huge demand for a wide range of industrial goods, consumer products, presenting multiple untapped opportunities for Indian businesses," Goyal told the conference.

"We need to bring more diversity in our trade basket. We need to make it more balanced between Russia and India. We need to add more variety, he said.

Senior Russian ministers and a large Russian business delegation are in New Delhi for Putin's visit.

Putin is due to meet Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for dinner on Thursday and the two leaders will hold summit talks on Friday.