🔗 Share this article Russian President Vladimir Putin Assures Steady Crude Oil Deliveries to India in Snub of American Demands Amid a defiant statement to the United States, Leader Vladimir Putin has told PM Narendra Modi that Russia is prepared to guarantee “uninterrupted” supplies of oil to India. The announcement came during a summit where both heads of state met in Delhi and asserted their bilateral ties were “immune to foreign coercion.” A Message For the Western Countries Putin's comments, delivered Friday, seemed to be a direct challenge at western countries, who have sought to compel New Delhi into scaling back its historical ties with Moscow. The context is in response to previous Washington's moves, notably additional trade penalties against Indian goods over its acquisition of discounted Russian crude. “Our nation is a trustworthy exporter of energy resources and anything needed for the advancement of India’s economy,” the Russian president stated. “Moscow stands willing to persist in guaranteeing the consistent flow of energy for the booming Indian economy.” Prime Minister Modi, without referencing crude explicitly, echoed the focus by saying that “energy security has been a strong and vital foundation of the bilateral alliance.” Questioning Washington's Stance Prior to the summit, during a media interview, Putin had criticized Washington's stance over India's energy purchases. Putin stated, “When Washington can claim the privilege to buy our atomic materials, then why can't India have the identical right?” Putin's arrival was his maiden trip to India following the beginning of the situation in Ukraine, and the two nations made a deliberate show to project that the friendship between the men remained intact. A Personal Greeting Taking an unusual gesture, Prime Minister Modi personally greeted Putin right off the plane. Both leaders embraced warmly like old friends before enjoying a private dinner the night before the summit. He referred to India's partnership with Russia as “a lodestar” and said it was “founded on shared respect and deep trust.” Strengthening Strategic Cooperation The meeting yielded a number of important deals in the fields of military and financial collaboration. A cornerstone agreement was the finalization of an economic cooperation programme aimed at 2030, which sets a goal to increase twofold commerce to a hundred billion USD per year by the 2030 deadline. Furthermore agreed to recalibrate their strategic cooperation. While Russia continues to be India's primary supplier of defence equipment, the volume has declined over the past decade as India has sought diversify its sources. The official release stressed cooperation in the co-development of sophisticated weapons platforms, although explicit details of systems like the fifth-generation aircraft were not made. Ultimately, Moscow and Delhi restated that during the “current complex, difficult, and unpredictable global landscape, Russian-Indian ties stay strong to foreign influence.”