Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi began summit talks in New Delhi on Friday, as New Delhi rolled out the red carpet for the Russian leader and Modi told him India supported peace efforts in Ukraine.
Putin is on his first visit to India in four years, aiming to boost trade with the top buyer of Russia's arms and seaborne oil as Western sanctions squeeze their decades-old ties.
The visit comes at a time when New Delhi is engaged in talks with the U.S. for a trade deal to cut punitive tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump on its goods over India's Russian oil purchases.
Moscow has been India's top arms supplier for decades and has said that it wants to import more Indian goods in an effort to grow trade to $100 billion by 2030 that so far has been skewed in its favour due to New Delhi's energy imports.
Since European nations reduced their reliance on Russian energy following the invasion of Ukraine nearly four years ago, India has significantly increased its purchase of discounted Russian crude oil.
“India is not neutral — India has a position, and that position is for peace," Modi told Putin as they opened their talks.
"We support every effort for peace, and we stand shoulder to shoulder with every initiative taken for peace.”
Putin, in response, thanked Modi for his attention and efforts aimed at resolving the conflict.
"We had the opportunity - and you gave me that opportunity - to speak in detail about what is happening on the Ukrainian track and about the steps we are taking jointly with some other partners, including the United States, toward a possible peaceful settlement of this crisis," Putin said.
On Friday, Putin was given a ceremonial welcome on the forecourt of Rashtrapati Bhavan, the colonial-era presidential palace, with a 21-gun salute as his convoy drove in.
The two sides are expected to announce a raft of deals at the end of formal talks.
Indian firms are expected to sign an agreement with Uralchem group, Russia's top potash and ammonium nitrate producer, to jointly set up a urea plant in Russia, Reuters reported on Thursday.
Russian lenders Gazprombank (GZPRI.MM) and Alfa Bank have also sought approval to begin operating in India to help Moscow boost its trade with India, Reuters reported.
Modi and Putin are also expected to discuss topics including labour and civil nuclear energy.
A large business and government delegation has accompanied Putin for the visit, including Defence Minister Andrei Belousov who held talks with his Indian counterpart Rajnath Singh on Thursday.
Belousov stated that "the Russian defence industry is ready to support India towards becoming self-reliant in the field of defence production," India's defence ministry said after the talks.
India has said Trump's tariffs are unjustified and unreasonable and pointed at ongoing U.S. trade with Moscow. The U.S. and European Union continue to import billions of dollars worth of Russian energy and commodities, ranging from liquefied natural gas to enriched uranium.
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