Prime Minister and Russian President Vladimir Putin held bilateral talks here at Bharat Mandapam on Friday, a day ahead of BRICS Summit 2026. It is Putin’s first in-person participation at a BRICS summit outside Russia since the war in Ukraine began in February 2022.
Trade, industrial cooperation, nuclear energy, skilled labour, critical minerals and fertilisers were expected to be in focus during discussions between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President , as India and Russia look to deepen their economic partnership.
At the centre of the talks was an ambitious by 2030, signalling the two sides’ intent to significantly expand economic ties in the coming years, news agency ANI said citing sources.
1. $100 billion trade target by 2030
The two leaders were expected to discuss ways to accelerate bilateral trade and work towards their target of taking two-way trade to $100 billion by 2030. Expanding market access and identifying new areas of business cooperation are likely to be key to achieving that goal.
India-Russia bilateral trade stands at approximately $60 billion, continuing an upward trend driven largely by crude oil imports.
Union Minister had earlier spoken about $100 billion bilateral trade between the two nations by 2030.
Speaking at an event with Russian minister of industry and trade Anton Alikhanov in New Delhi on 10 September, Goyal said bilateral trade, currently at around $60 billion a year, would need to grow by another over the next four years, requiring sustained double-digit annual growth.
“The targets set by the two heads of state would be a measure of the performance of both governments and businesses,” Goyal said at INNOPROM, an international industrial trade fair that began in New Delhi on Thursday.
2. Expanding industrial cooperation
Industrial cooperation was supposed to be another major focus, with in India expected to provide a platform for expanding partnerships between Indian and Russian companies, the news agency said.
The discussions covered cooperation in the railway sector and tunnelling, development of the steel value chain, creation of more business-to-business opportunities and broader access for Indian products to the Russian market.
3. Boosting civil nuclear cooperation
The two leaders were also expected to explore ways to strengthen civil nuclear cooperation, including cooperation across the fuel cycle as well as providing life-cycle support for nuclear projects.
4. More Indian skilled workers in Russia
Mobility and skilled labour will also be on the agenda, news agency ANI said.
The two countries are looking at ways to increase the number of Indian skilled workers travelling to Russia, potentially opening up new opportunities for Indian professionals while addressing in the Russian economy.
5. Cooperation in critical minerals
With critical minerals emerging as a strategic priority globally, India and Russia were expected to discuss greater cooperation in the sector. The area could become increasingly important as both countries seek to strengthen supply chains for strategic industries.
6. Fertiliser cooperation
Fertiliser supplies will remain another important pillar of the economic relationship. The two sides are expected to focus on sustaining and expanding cooperation in fertilisers, including through strategic joint-venture projects.
Taken together, the six areas underline the broadening of the I beyond traditional sectors such as defence and energy, with both sides looking to build deeper industrial, technology and supply-chain partnerships.
PM Modi gifted a copy of Thirukkural to Putin
PM Modi gave a Russian Translation of the Thirukkural to President Putin. Thirukkural means “sacred couplets” or “sacred verses” in Tamil, derived from the words Thiru (sacred/blessed) and Kural (short two-line poetic form). It is a celebrated classical Tamil ethical and moral text written by the poet Thiruvalluvar.
Putin landed in New Delhi on Firday begining his three-day visit to India. Putin will participate in the and meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi to expand bilateral trade, investment and energy cooperation during the visit.
Putin is accompanied by a high-level delegation. He was recieved by , KV Singh at the airport on Firday morning.
The two-day BRICS summit hosted by India starting Saturday is expected to focus on boosting collective resilience in food, energy, health, disaster reduction and critical supply chains with New Delhi positioning the bloc as an effective anchor to navigate a fragmented geopolitical environment.
Modi and Putin mey last at the on the sidelines of the summit in Bishkek on 31 August. During their meeting, the Prime Minister urged the Russian leader to shift from an “endless war towards the end of war”, referring to the Russia-Ukraine conflict that began five years ago after Moscow’s full-scale invasion.