India, Russia reaffirm defence ties and privileged strategic partnership
The Russian Defence Ministry said the sides discussed topical issues of bilateral cooperation in the defence sphere and confirmed the focus on further strengthening the specialised cooperation in the form of a particularly privileged strategic partnership.
It added that the meeting took place in a warm and friendly atmosphere which is traditional for the Russian-Indian relations.
Building on this spirit, Russia on Tuesday emphasised that sovereign nations have the right to choose their trade partners and determine the terms of economic cooperation based on their interests, TASS reported.
Commenting on the US' threats regarding India, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told journalists, "We believe that sovereign countries must have and do have the right to choose their trade partners, the partners in trade and economic cooperation, on their own and independently determine those modes of trade and economic cooperation that suit the interests of a country in question."
US President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he would increase the tariff charged on imports from India from the current rate of 25% "very substantially" over the next 24 hours due to New Delhi's continued purchases of Russian oil, Reuters reported.
Soon after, India said that "the targeting of India is unjustified and unreasonable". A statement by the Ministry of External Affairs said the government will take all necessary measures to safeguard its national interests and economic security.
The spokesperson said India began importing from Russia because traditional supplies were diverted to Europe after the outbreak of the Ukraine conflict and that the very nations criticising India are themselves engaged in trade with Russia.
"Where the United States is concerned, it continues to import from Russia uranium hexafluoride for its nuclear industry, palladium for its EV industry, fertilisers, as well as chemicals. In this background, the targeting of India is unjustified and unreasonable. Like any major economy, India will take all necessary measures to safeguard its national interests and economic security," the statement said.
India has, earlier too, defended its sovereign right to conduct energy policy based on national interest, stating that energy purchases are guided by market dynamics and prevailing global conditions.
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