Moscow (Russia), August 19: External Affairs Minister (EAM) S. Jaishankar has arrived in Moscow on his three-day official visit to Russia on Tuesday. He is visiting Moscow at the invitation of First Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, Denis Manturov.
During the visit, Jaishankar will co-chair the 26th Session of the India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technological and Cultural Cooperation (IRIGC-TEC), which is scheduled to take place on August 20, 2025. He is also expected to address the India-Russia Business Forum meeting in Moscow, where leaders from both sides will discuss opportunities to boost economic and trade ties.
The External Affairs Minister will also hold talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. Both leaders are likely to review the overall bilateral agenda and exchange views on regional and global developments of common interest.
India and Russia share a long-standing and time-tested relationship described as a “Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership.” Officials said the visit aims to further strengthen cooperation across trade, economy, science, technology, culture and global issues.
US Tariffs on India
S. Jaishankar's visit comes at a time when U.S. President Donald Trump doubled the tariffs on Indian goods to 50% as a penalty for its purchase of Russian oil. The spike in tariff escalated the trade war with a key US partner in Asia and also sparked outrage in New Delhi.
India also strongly condemned the tariff action and called it unjustified and unreasonable. The government data showed that the U.S. bilateral trade with Russia stood at USD 5.2 billion, compared to USD 36 billion in 2021.
Trump-Putin Summit
On August 15, US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin concluded a high-stakes summit at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Alaska. The summit which lasted for around three hours was focused on ending the war in Ukraine. However, no concrete agreement was reached between the two leaders.
