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President Putin has arrived in India on a two-day visit after 4 years. He will attend the Russia-India summit today.
Russian President Putin visited India on Thursday after 4 years. PM Modi welcomed him with a hug at the airport. After this, both the leaders reached the PM’s residence in the same car, where a private dinner was given in the honor of the Russian President.
Media from America to Ukraine is covering this tour prominently. Read what major media outlets wrote about Putin’s visit to India.
Britain- BBC: Russia is not isolated in the world
Putin arrived in India on a two-day visit, where he was warmly welcomed by PM Modi. There will be an annual summit meeting between the two leaders, in which many agreements are expected to be discussed. This visit is taking place at a time when America is continuously pressurizing India to reduce oil purchases from Russia.
The friendship between India and Russia is very old and both the countries are important for each other in many ways. India is one of the fastest growing large economies in the world and a market with a population of approximately one and a half billion. This is the reason why Russia considers India an important partner for itself. Russia has big expectations from India especially in the oil business.
Apart from oil, India-Russia partnership is also very strong in defense sector. India has been buying Russian arms for many years. Before this visit, there were reports that India was considering purchasing new fighter aircraft and air defense systems from Russia.
There is a shortage of skilled workers in Russia and it sees India as a major source to fulfill this shortage. This visit also has a big political message. Russia wants to show the world that despite Western opposition and the Ukraine war, it is not alone.
Putin’s visit to India and earlier his meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping are part of this message. Russia insists that it has a ‘no-limit partnership’ with China and that its relationship with India is also ‘special and strategic’.
Ukraine-Kyiv Independent: Decades old friendship between India and Russia
India faces a big test of diplomacy this week as it hosts Russian President Vladimir Putin while trying to strike a balance between Russia and Ukraine.
The world is also keeping an eye on India because it has to keep energy and defense relations strong with Russia, while Ukraine, America and European countries want India to put pressure on Russia so that the war can be weakened.
For Putin, this visit is an opportunity to show that Russia is not isolated from the world and that it has strong partners in major regions like the Global South.
Many experts in Ukraine are worried about how far Modi will stick to his promise made in August 2024, in which he told Ukrainian President Zelensky that India would help end the war.
European countries also hope that Modi will take care of Europe’s security concerns while talking to Putin.
The friendship between India and Russia is many decades old. There have been close relations between the two since the Cold War and the Soviet Union also supported India in the 1971 India-Pakistan war. This is the reason why Indian leaders often describe Russia as their most reliable friend.
After the start of the Ukraine war, Modi has spoken to both Putin and Zelensky and appealed to stop the violence. But India has always adopted a neutral stance on the global stage and has abstained from voting on many resolutions brought against Russia in the UN, as it did on the Crimea issue in 2014.
America- New York Times: Russia has a big global partner
Modi himself going to the airport to receive Putin shows the close relationship between the two leaders. Putin has come to India on a short but important visit, where the two leaders will hold the annual India-Russia Summit. During this period, agreements related to defense deals, ease of trade and sending workers from India to Russia are expected to be discussed.
As soon as Putin got off the plane, Modi shook hands with him and the two leaders hugged. They then left together in a car, reminiscent of his ‘limo diplomacy’ in China last time, when Putin took Modi around in his limousine.
Modi hosted a private dinner for Putin on Thursday night. American pressure is also having an impact on these meetings, because the American government has objection to India’s purchase of oil from Russia.
The India-Russia summit shows that the relationship between the two countries is decades old and strong. For Putin, this visit is also an opportunity to tell the world that Russia still has important global partners. At the same time, it is difficult for Modi to strike a balance, on one hand Russia is India’s biggest arms supplier and on the other hand America is its biggest trading partner.
Pakistan- The Dawn: More emphasis on trade during Putin’s visit
The purpose of Putin’s visit is to further strengthen the defense relations between India and Russia, especially at a time when America is pressurizing India to reduce the purchase of oil from Russia.
There will be maximum emphasis on trade in this visit, because India needs cheaper oil from Russia and also does not want to anger America. The Trump administration had imposed 50% tariffs on several Indian products in August, saying that India was funding its war machine by buying oil from Russia.
Russia wants to increase the supply of S-400 air defense system to India and according to Indian media reports, Russia can also offer India a joint production project of its Su-57 fighter aircraft.
In terms of oil, India became a big buyer of Russia, due to which it saved billions of dollars. But in recent months, after strict US sanctions, India has reduced the purchase of Russian oil. India fears that any new big energy or defense deal with Russia may anger America, which may affect the ongoing trade talks between the two countries.
Qatar- Al Jazeera: Modi-Putin’s personal relationship very strong
By hugging Putin, Modi gave the message that the personal relationship between the two leaders is very strong. This visit is taking place at a time when America’s pressure on India is increasing.
Putin said that if America has the right to buy nuclear fuel from Russia, then India should also have full right to buy Russian oil. He also said that the energy partnership between India and Russia is not affected by political circumstances or incidents like Ukraine war.
The way Modi welcomed Putin, it has sent a message to the world that India is not going to bow down to western pressure. Experts believe that this welcome also shows that Putin is not completely isolated on the international stage.
The oil coming to India from Russia has now increased many fold compared to before. Before 2022, India used to buy only 2.5% of oil from Russia, which has now increased to about 36%. With this, India has become the second largest buyer of Russian oil in the world.
Britain- The Guardian: Russia-India are not afraid of America
After almost four years, President Putin has again reached India. Last time he came to Delhi for just five hours due to the Covid pandemic, where he spoke with PM Modi on economic and defense cooperation. But just a few months later, Russia launched a major attack on Ukraine and Putin became almost isolated internationally.
Meanwhile, world politics has also changed a lot. Donald Trump’s re-victory has created tension between America and India. Trump has imposed heavy tariffs on India’s exports, which has increased Delhi’s concerns.
In such an environment, Putin’s visit to India is considered very important. Experts say that this visit is a clear indication that both the countries are not afraid of American pressure. This visit is also important for Russia because it shows that it no longer feels isolated from the world.
Russian researcher Petr Topichkanov of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute says that the biggest message of this visit is that it is happening. With this, Russia wants to show normalization of its relations with the world.
The stakes are even higher for India. According to Hudson Institute expert Aparna Pandey, India is currently going through difficult geopolitics. America is adopting a slightly different stance, Russia is not as strong as before and China is continuously increasing its strength.
Bangladesh- Daily Star: Close relations between the two leaders were seen
Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself arrived to receive Putin at the airport, a rarely seen move and a reflection of the close relationship between the two leaders. As soon as Putin got off the plane, he hugged Modi and both left in the same car.
India and Russia have set a target of increasing mutual trade to 100 billion dollars by 2030. Trade between the two countries is expected to increase from $13 billion in 2021 to about $69 billion in 2024–25. This increase was mainly due to large scale purchase of Russian oil by India.
However, during April-August 2025, trade declined to $28.25 billion. The reason for this is the imposition of heavy duties on Indian goods by America and the pressure of sanctions on oil purchase from Russia.
Russia has clearly said that it wants to buy more goods from India so that the trade can be balanced. Currently, India buys a lot of energy from Russia, but Russia buys very few goods from India.
Russian President Putin is trending on Google regarding his visit to India…
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