Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin opened discussions in New Delhi on Friday, marking their second meeting in two weeks, with talks expected to centre on trade, energy, and defence relations between the two nations, which share a longstanding friendship.
The discussions are taking place on the eve of the annual BRICS leaders’ summit in the Indian capital, which will be attended by Chinese President Xi Jinping, Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian, and other leaders.
Modi and Putin are likely to hold talks on collaboration in areas such as civil nuclear energy, fertilisers, defence, critical minerals, manufacturing, railways, and steel.
The two leaders met on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, on August 31, where Modi told Putin that the war in Ukraine needed to end for humanity's sake and that New Delhi would support every peace effort to stop the fighting.
India, along with China, is one of the biggest buyers of Russian oil, which is seen as helping Moscow replenish its budget since it sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine in 2022 and was hit with sweeping Western sanctions.
Perhaps India sought to resist the pressure, saying its large population and economy need secure, affordable and reliable energy supplies.
New Delhi has also said that the Ukraine conflict can be resolved only through dialogue and diplomacy and not by some countries stopping energy, metal or fertiliser trade with Russia.
Russia’s portion of India’s crude oil imports increased in 2026, hitting a record 51% in July, as interruptions in Middle Eastern supplies pushed Indian refiners to depend more heavily on Russian oil. According to Indian media, that share probably eased in August as China ramped up its purchases of Russian oil.
Putin traveled to India in December 2025 for the annual India-Russia summit, during which the two nations agreed to deepen their trade and defence ties.
