OUR CORRESPONDENT
New Delhi: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Tuesday embarked on a three-day visit to Moscow to further strengthen the “time-tested” India-Russia partnership.
The visit comes against the backdrop of strains in India’s ties with the US following President Donald Trump doubling tariffs on Indian goods to 50 per cent that included an additional penalty of 25 per cent for purchasing Russian crude oil.
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), announcing Jaishankar’s trip, said he will co-chair the 26th Session of the India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technological and Cultural Cooperation (IRIGC-TEC) to be held on Wednesday.
The external affairs minister and Russia’s First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov are set to co-chair the IRIGC-TEC that is expected to lay the ground for President Vladimir Putin’s visit to India later this year.
Jaishankar and his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov are also expected to discuss the latest initiatives by the Trump administration to bring peace to Ukraine.
During the visit, the external affairs minister will review the bilateral agenda and share perspective on regional and global issues with the Russian foreign minister, the MEA said in a brief statement.
“The visit aims to further strengthen the longstanding and time-tested India-Russia Special and Privileged Strategic partnership,” it added.
It is expected that the two sides will also deliberate on India-Russia energy ties during Jaishankar’s trip to Moscow.
US President Trump this month issued an executive order slapping an additional 25 per cent tariff on Indian goods as a penalty for New Delhi’s continued purchase of Russian oil.
Defending its purchase of Russian crude oil, India has been maintaining that its energy procurement is driven by national interest and market dynamics.
India turned to purchasing Russian oil sold at a discount after Western countries imposed sanctions on Moscow and shunned its supplies over its invasion of Ukraine in February, 2022.