View: Modi's visit shows our relations with Russia not legacy holdout
India-Russia ties. PM Modi and President Vladimir Putin, two of the most experienced world leaders, discussed bilateral relations and the fast-changing worldwide landscape in a five-hour conversation. If personal connection between the leaders is the diplomatic measure, the first day was successful. PM Modi received Russia's highest civilian decoration, the Order of Saint Andrew the Apostle.
PM Modi's last visit to Russia, for the 2019 Vladivostok summit, signalled India's participation in the Russian Far East to establish fresh leverage to counter Chinese dominance in North East Asia. A maritime corridor from Vladivostok to Chennai to connect to the Northern Sea route was meant to protect India's Arctic energy and commodity interests. Five years later, with little implementation, the 2024 summit revisited several 2019 projects.
New consulates in Yekaterinburg and Kazan will strengthen India's diplomatic ties in Russia's key regions. Bilateral relations will regain momentum only if projects in energy, fertilisers, and commodities are converted into long-term agreements. Doing so will require private sector involvement. Both governments should encourage enterprises that are willing to break new ground in investment and joint ventures, building leverage in fast-changing global marketplaces that lasts longer than trade partners.
If trusted geographies and resilient supply chains in the energy, petrochemicals, nuclear and other high-tech fields are important, Russia fits the bill to a T. Russia should view India, one
