Defence, Energy, Trade In Focus Ahead Of Putin's Visit To India For Key Summit

The Russian President is visiting India for the 23rd India-Russia annual summit. It'll be keenly watched as India attempts to strike a balance by managing its ties with the US and, at the same time, thrashing out deals with Russia

Dec 02, 2025 · 3 min read

Narendra Modi, Vladimir Putin, Russia, New Delhi, Defence Acquisition Procedure, Putin, Modi, Moscow

All eyes will be on India as New Delhi prepares to welcome Russian President Vladimir Putin later this week. Despite Indian refiners being forced to reduce their crude purchase from Russia, New Delhi and Moscow have decided to up the ante and forge new partnerships in several other sectors, including defence, critical minerals, and energy. The two countries have also increased the use of local currencies for settling payments related to bilateral trade at a time when Indian exporters are looking to expand their businesses and tap a larger share of the Russian market.

The issue of increasing trade through the rupee and ruble is expected to come up as well.

"The Sber branch in India actively develops lending to Russian exporters and their Indian subsidiaries in rupees to support the growth of sales of Russian manufacturers’ products in the Indian market,” Russian news agency TASS quoted Ivan Nosov, CEO of the Sberbank branch in India. Sberbank is one of the leading banks in Russia.

Sources said that the visit could lead to some big announcements.

Putin In India

This is Putin's first visit to India since the Ukraine war altered the global strategic scenario, and comes at a time when New Delhi is recalibrating its defence procurement and expanding energy trade with Moscow.

The visit would also be keenly looked at as India tries to manage its ties with the US and protect its economic engagements with Washington, while thrashing out deals with Russia.

Sources stated that during Putin's visit, the two sides will review cooperation across defence, nuclear energy, hydrocarbons, space, technology, and trade. In the aftermath of Operation Sindoor, focus is expected to be on next-generation air-defence systems, including possible procurement of Russia's S-500 platform. Earlier this year, the Russian S-400 was used to shield India from drone attacks by Pakistan.

The Summit Schedule

The Ministry of External Affairs had last week stated that the Russian President will make a two-day visit to India from December 4.

He is scheduled to hold talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, as part of the 23rd India-Russia annual summit.

“The forthcoming state visit will provide an opportunity for the leadership of India and Russia to review progress in bilateral relations, set the vision for strengthening the ‘special and privileged strategic partnership’ and exchange views on regional and global issues of mutual interest,” the External Affairs Ministry stated.

Defence Ties

Russia has been a major supplier for India in the defence sector, and has supplied over 70% of India's major conventional arms over the past decades.

The visit by the Russian President is expected to further cement this position in the defence sector, even though India has been trying to push for major indigenisation in the sector under the Narendra Modi government's Atmanirbhar Bharat programme. The initiative in defence focuses on reducing import dependence by promoting indigenous production through reforms such as the Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP) and a focus on boosting exports.

Focus On Exports

With the Trump administration's continuous vacillations on tariffs, New Delhi has been trying to ink Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with several countries and other trade partners.

India's exports to Russia remain low, consistently around 0.7% to 1.1% of India's total exports over the past nine financial years. In contrast, imports from Russia have risen sharply, especially after 2020-21, climbing from 1.4% to 6.5% in 2022-23 and reaching nearly 9% in both 2023-24 and 2024-25, largely fueled by oil and the defence sector. This financial year, imports stand at 8.6%, while exports remain just 1%.

India is looking to boost its exports to Russia in a major way. And the visit of Putin is going to give direction to the relationship amid a new geopolitical and economic landscape.