How trade, tariffs and oil are at the centre of S Jaishankar's visit to Russia

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India's External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar is on a two-day visit to Russia, which comes as US President Donald Trump has levied a 25 per cent tariff on New Delhi for importing Russian crude. However, oil isn't the only focus of the visit. The Indian leader highlighted the trade deficit in Moscow and called for an early conclusion of the India-Eurasian Economic Union Free Trade Agreement
When US President Donald Trump imposed a 50 per cent tariff on India — a whopping 25 per cent for importing oil from Russia — he presumed that New Delhi would bow down and stop purchasing crude from Moscow. However, India has refused to cower to Trump's demands.
Against this backdrop, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has now travelled to Moscow where he will hold talks with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov today (August 21). Earlier, the external affairs minister also met Russia's First Deputy PM Denis Manturov and addressed the India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technological and Cultural Cooperation (IRIGC-TEC).
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Notably, Jaishankar's visit to Russia comes just two weeks after India's National Security Adviser Ajit Doval visited Moscow for a high-level visit to strengthen ties between the two nations.
What is Jaishankar's agenda in Russia though? We take a closer look.
Addressing India-Russia's trade imbalance
At the IRIGC-TEC, Union Minister S Jaishankar flagged the issue of the major trade imbalance between India and Russia. He noted that while bilateral trade has grown leaps and bounds, it has been accompanied by a great trade imbalance.
'Over the last four years, our bilateral trade in goods has increased, as you have noted, more than five-fold from $13 billion in 2021 to $68 billion in 2024-25, and it continues to grow,' Jaishankar said.
Speaking at the India-Russia Business Forum in Moscow.
🇮🇳 🇷🇺
https://t.co/r4NC1wV3aT — Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) August 20, 2025
'However, a major trade imbalance has accompanied the growth; it has increased from $6.6 billion to $58.9 billion, which is about nine times. So we need to address that urgently,' he added.
He said that the solution lay in the 'complementary nature' of both economies, suggesting greater efforts to expand Indian exports and diversify trade beyond energy and raw materials.
S Jaishankar also pushed for more Russian companies to 'engage with its Indian counterparts'. He said that India's rapidly growing economy and initiatives like 'Make in have opened up new windows for foreign businesses.
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'An India with a GDP of $4 trillion plus growing at seven per cent for the foreseeable future has an obvious need for large resources from dependable sources. In some cases, it could be assured supplies of essential products, fertiliser, chemicals, and machinery, being good examples. Its rapidly growing infrastructure offers business openings to enterprises with an established track record in their own country,' said Jaishankar.
'The 'Make in India' and other such initiatives have opened up new windows for foreign businesses. The modernisation and the urbanisation of India generate their own demands, flowing from shifts in consumption and lifestyle. Each of these dimensions represent an invitation for Russian companies to engage more intensively with their Indian counterparts. Our endeavour is to encourage them to rise to that challenge,' he added.
Mentioning that India and Russia have nurtured one of the steadiest relationships between major nations, Jaishankar pushed for more 'strenuous efforts' to diversify and balance trade between both nations.
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Union External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar with First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Denis Manturov and others during the India-Russia Business Forum. Image Courtesy: @MEAIndia/X
Restarting talks on trade deal with Russia-led EAEU bloc
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar also asserted the need for an 'early conclusion' to trade talks between India and the Russia-led Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). Apart from Russia, this grouping comprises Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyz Republic. Trade deal talks with the EAEU had stalled in early 2022 following the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war.
The trade between India and the EAEU stood at $69 billion in 2024, a seven per cent increase over 2023.
At the meeting on Wednesday, both sides finalised the terms of reference for the trade deal.
Russia's sale of oil to India
Jaishankar's visit to Russia comes at a significant moment; India faces a whopping 25 per cent tariff levied by Donald Trump for importing crude from Moscow. While India has maintained that their purchase of oil is in national interest, Trump and his officials claim New Delhi's actions are funding the war against Ukraine.
And on Wednesday, Russia maintained that shipments of crude, petroleum products and coal to India would continue. Roman Babushkin, the charge d'affaires at the Russian embassy, said Moscow and New Delhi would find ways to overcome the US measures in their 'national interests'.
'I want to highlight that despite the political situation, we can predict … the same level of oil import,' he told reporters.
Russia's First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov also stated that Russian oil and other energy supplies will continue to reach India, adding that Moscow was eyeing new opportunities for LNG exports.
During his visit to Russia, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar is to meet with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, to reinforce the 'special privileged strategic partnership between the two nations. File image/PTI
India-Russia's time-tested ties
Jaishankar's visit to Russia underscores the importance that New Delhi holds for Moscow. Through the years, the two nations have remained allies of another — a friendship that dates back to India's Independence.
In fact, India and Russia have always extended supported each other; for instance, during the 1965 war between India and Pakistan, Russia, then the Soviet Union, played a mediating role and hosted the so-called Tashkent summit in 1966 where a peace treaty was signed.
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Even as the Russia-Ukraine war broke out, India maintained its ties with Moscow — Prime Minister Narendra Modi even visited Vladimir Putin in July last year. In the past, External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar has referred to the India–Russia relationship as the one constant in global politics over the last half century. India has also refrained from voting against Russia in the UN Security Council.
Today, India buys about 35 per cent of its crude oil from Russia, up from just one per cent before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, as per a Bloomberg report. Moreover, Russia is a dependable supplier of weapons to India. As per a Stockholm International Peace Research Institute report, 36 per cent of all India's weapons are imported from Russia.
There is also a long-standing economic relationship. India and Russia aim to increase bilateral trade from $68 billion to $100 billion by the end of this decade. Connectivity initiatives include the Chennai-Vladivostok maritime corridor and the International North-South Transport Corridor.
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It will be interesting to see what comes next for the India-Russia ties amid Trump's tariff pressures. As of now, it looks like New Delhi and Moscow are in no mood to relent to Washington's demands. In fact, Russian President Vladimir Putin, who faces an international arrest warrant, is also expected to visit India later this year.
With inputs from agencies