Jaishankar to visit Moscow next week for talks with Lavrov

New Delhi: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar is set to travel to Moscow next week for a two-day visit, where he will hold discussions with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. The talks come against the backdrop of heightened attention on India’s oil trade with Russia and recent US trade measures against New Delhi.

Diplomatic sources indicated that Jaishankar is also expected to meet President Vladimir Putin during his stay. The visit follows National Security Advisor Ajit Doval’s trip to Russia last week, during which Doval met Putin and other senior officials.

According to Russia’s foreign ministry, both sides will address “the most important issues of the bilateral agenda”. The meetings are anticipated to cover trade, energy cooperation, and preparations for Putin’s scheduled visit to India later this year.

Jaishankar will also co-chair the 26th session of the India-Russia Intergovernmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific-Technological, and Cultural Cooperation alongside First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov. Officials familiar with the agenda said the session is likely to include discussions on expanding economic ties and sector-specific partnerships. Energy trade is expected to be a central topic. Russia has become India’s top crude oil supplier, accounting for 35.1 per cent of India’s total oil imports in 2024-25, up from just 1.7 per cent in 2019-20. This surge followed Western sanctions on Moscow after its 2022 invasion of Ukraine, which led Russia to offer discounted crude to buyers willing to maintain trade links. India has consistently maintained that its crude purchases from Russia are determined by market factors and national interest. “Our energy policy is guided by our country’s needs and the stability of supplies,” an Indian official said earlier this year in response to criticism.

Last week, US President Donald Trump signed an executive order imposing an additional 25 per cent tariff on Indian goods, bringing the total tariff level to 50 per cent. The measure was described by Washington as a response to New Delhi’s continued oil imports from Russia.

During Jaishankar’s visit, both sides are also expected to discuss developments in the Russia-Ukraine conflict. India has called for resolving the crisis through negotiations. In July last year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told Putin in Moscow that “peace cannot be achieved on the battlefield,” stressing the need for diplomacy. A month later, Modi travelled to Kyiv and urged Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to engage in direct talks with Russia without delay.