Russia’s President Vladimir Putin bids farewell to India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi following their meeting at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia July 9, 2024.
| Photo Credit: REUTERS

The United States is disappointed about the symbolism and timing of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Russia visit at a time when it hosted the NATO summit here, a senior State Department official has told the lawmakers, who have expressed concerns over the increasing India-Russia ties.

“I could not agree with you more about our disappointment about the symbolism and the timing of Prime Minister Modi’s trip to Moscow. We are having those tough conversations with our Indian friends,” Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asia Donald Lu told American lawmakers at a Congressional hearing here on Tuesday.

“I assure you may be if I could just take a moment to put into context that visit. Prime Minister Modi, two weeks before he went to Moscow, also saw President Zelenskyy on the margins of the G7 summit in Italy,” he said.

“Then we were looking very carefully at what Modi did when he was in Moscow. We did not see any new major defense deals. We saw no major discussion of technology cooperation. In addition, you have Modi having said in front of Putin on live television, his feeling that the war in Ukraine could not be won on the battlefield and the pain that he felt watching the death of children in war,” Mr. Lu said.

“A clear reference to the bombing of the children’s hospital in Kyiv that happened while he was there. I share your concern about this visit, sir, and we are trying very hard to communicate those concerns directly to the Indians. The Indians, who have cancelled billions of dollars in defense purchases over these last two and a half years because the Russians can’t deliver anymore. So we’re working very hard on that,” Mr. Lu said.

He was responding to a question from Congressman Joe Wilson, a former co-chair of the Caucus of India and Indian Americans in this regard.

“I was shocked and saddened to see the embrace by Prime Minister Narendra Modi who I so respect and admire embrace war criminal Putin in Moscow on the very day that Mr. Putin intentionally launched missiles at the largest children’s hospital in Kyiv, Ukraine,” he said.

“Prime Minister Modi is a hero of mine who I have visited in New Delhi, have welcomed twice to address Congress along with being present with Governor Nikki Haley of South Carolina at Madison Square Garden and New York City. I was with President Donald Trump at the Howdy Modi welcome for Prime Minister Modi. 40,000 people there in Houston, Texas and it turned out it’s something I know. It was the largest assemblage of millionaires in the history of the world,” the Republican Congressman said.

“The Indian American community has been so successful. The future of India should be with democratic free markets as we have seen. Indian Americans have achieved the highest level of income of any immigrant group in the United States. In fact, Indian Americans make twice the income of the average American and indeed it’s due to association with democracy, not dictatorship and the dictatorship that world criminal Putin is trying to restore the failed Soviet Union and he wants to oppress first the people of Russia,” Mr. Wilson said.

“It’s to the benefit not of the people of Russia, but to the oligarchs just as the communist regime was to benefit the ranking members of the Communist Party. With that in mind, India should be a beacon for democracy and not dependent on a dictatorship. What can be done, to promote India not being dependent on inferior Russian weapons and cheap commodities? And we know that the gas that’s being purchased, the funding of that is going to kill Ukrainians,” he added.

U.S. President Joe Biden speaks with India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi. File.
| Photo Credit: Reuters

India will continue to be a strategic partner for the U.S. despite concerns over its ties with Russia, the Biden Administration has said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was in Russia for two days for the 22nd India-Russia annual summit that has been watched closely by the West amidst the raging Ukraine conflict.

During his talks with Mr. Putin on Tuesday, Prime Minister Modi told President Putin that a solution to the Ukraine conflict is not possible on the battlefield and peace efforts do not succeed amid bombs and bullets.

On Tuesday, spokespersons of the Pentagon and the State Department reacted separately to questions on India’s relationship with Russia and Modi’s visit to Moscow.

“India and Russia have had a relationship for a very long time. From a US perspective, India is a strategic partner with whom we continue to engage in full and frank dialogue to include their relationship with Russia. As it relates to the NATO summit being this week, of course, like you, the world is focused on that,” Pentagon Press Secretary Major General Pat Ryder told reporters at a news conference.

On the other hand, US State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters at his daily news conference that the US has been quite clear about its “concerns about India’s relationship with Russia.” “We have expressed those privately directly to the Indian government, and continue to do so. And that has not changed,” Miller told reporters at his daily news conference.

India has been stoutly defending its “special and privileged strategic partnership” with Russia and maintained the momentum in the ties notwithstanding the Ukraine conflict.

India has not yet condemned Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 and has consistently pitched for a resolution of the conflict through dialogue and diplomacy.

Mr. Ryder said: “I do not think anybody will be surprised if (Russian) President (Vladimir) Putin tries to represent this visit in a way that seeks to somehow show that he is not isolated from the rest of the world. And the fact of the matter is President Putin’s war of choice has isolated Russia from the rest of the world, and it has come at great cost.

Their war of aggression has come at great cost, and the facts bear that out,” he said.

“So we will continue to view India as a strategic partner. We will continue to have a robust dialogue with them,” Ryder said.

“He [Putin] is not looking so isolated with the head of the world’s largest democracy being in Moscow, embracing him right now,” a reporter asked.

Mr. Ryder responded by saying that Prime Minister Modi also met recently with the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy and offered his assurances that India will continue to do everything within its means to support a peaceful solution to the war in Ukraine.

“I think that we trust that India will support efforts to realise an enduring and just peace for Ukraine and will convey to Mr Putin the importance of adhering to the UN charter and the principles of sovereignty and territorial integrity,” he added.

Miller said the US continues to “urge India to support efforts to realise an enduring and just peace in Ukraine, based on the principles of the UN charter based on upholding Ukraine’s territorial integrity and its sovereignty. And that will continue to be what we will engage with India about.

Moscow:

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today made a wholehearted endorsement of India’s ties with Russia, describing the old ally as India’s “all-weather friend” and lauding President Vladimir Putin for strengthening the bilateral relations over the past two decades of his leadership.

Addressing the Indian diaspora, he said the India-Russia relationship is built on the strong pillar of mutual trust and respect, asserting that their ties were tested time and again only to emerge stronger every time.

PM Modi’s high praise of Russia as an ally and President Putin’s leadership came amid ongoing efforts by the Western world to isolate the Russian leader over the war in Ukraine.

Prime Minister Modi also made a veiled criticism of the “influence-oriented global order” which endured for decades.

“But, what the world needs right now is confluence not influence and no one can deliver this message better than India which has a strong tradition of worshipping confluences,” he said.

He said India is being seen as a strong pillar in the “emerging multi-polar world order”.

“When it speaks of peace, dialogue and diplomacy, then the whole world listens.” PM Modi has often stressed the need for dialogue and diplomacy to end the war between Russia and Ukraine.

Commenting on India’s ties with Russia, he said he has been for decades an admirer of the unique partnership between the two countries.

“On hearing the word Russia, the first word that comes to the mind of every Indian is India’s ‘sukh-dukh ka saathi’ (all-weather friend) and a trusted ally,” he said.

“No matter how low the temperature dips below zero degrees during Russian winter, India-Russia friendship has always remained in ‘plus’ and been full of warmth. This relationship is built on the strong foundation of mutual trust and mutual respect,” PM Modi said.

He said he had a special appreciation for “his friend” President Putin for steering the India-Russia friendship to greater heights over the last two decades.

As prime minister, he said it was his sixth visit to Russia and the two leaders have met 17 times during this period.

“All these meetings have added to our mutual trust and respect,” he said, praising Putin for helping the evacuation of Indian students during the war. He expressed gratitude to the Russian leader and Russian citizens for this.

To the applause from the audience, he announced that India will open two new consulates in Russia to boost travel and trade between the two countries.

Recalling the celebrated Hindi song ‘Sar pe lal topi Rusi, phir bhi dil hai Hindustani’ picturised on Raj Kapoor, he said it may be an old number but its sentiments remain evergreen.

He also mentioned Mithun Chakraborty, another Indian actor who earned a big following in Russia, as he spoke about the deep cultural ties between the two countries.

PM Modi said India was undergoing a transformation and the pace of development over the past 10 years has taken the world by surprise. Even the world now acknowledges what he used to say during his poll campaign that the 21st century belongs to India, he added.

The fast pace of India’s development will write a “new chapter” in the world’s progress, he said.

He said India was changing as it believes in the strength of its 140 crore citizens who are now dreaming of turning their resolve of ‘Viksit Bharat’ into reality.

“Today’s India is brimming with self-confidence, unlike the situation before 2014 when the country was sunk in despair, and this is our biggest capital,” PM Modi said.

In this context, he mentioned India’s win in the T20 World Cup and added that India’s teams in different sports were giving a historic performance.

“The youth India of today does not concede defeat till the last ball and the last moment,” he said, adding that the country is sending a strong team for the Paris Olympics and its athletes will show their mettle.

“When people like you bless us, even the biggest goals can be achieved. You all know that today’s India achieves whatever goal it sets its mind to,” he said.

He said it was in his DNA to challenge all the challenges and India will write a new chapter of global growth in coming years.

PM Modi said it was exactly a month ago that he took oath as prime minister for the third consecutive term when he had made the resolve to work at thrice the strength and speed to fulfil the aspirations of the country.

“Our government envisions making India the world’s third-largest economy, build three crore homes for the poor and turn three crore poor women in villages to ‘lakhpati didi’,” the prime minister said amid chants of ‘Modi, Modi’ and ‘Modi hai toh mumkin hai’.

He said India was the country which sent Chandrayaan to a place on the moon where no country has gone before and has given the work the most reliable model for digital transactions.

“India’s development of the past 10 years was just a trailer, we will see much faster growth in the next 10 years,” PM Modi asserted.

The Indian diaspora takes pride in the country’s achievements, he added.
 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin embrace during an informal meeting at Novo-Ogaryovo residence, outside Moscow, Russia, on July 8, 2024.
| Photo Credit: AP

The United States has raised concerns with India about its relationship with Russia amid Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, a U.S. State Department spokesperson told reporters on Monday in response to questions about a meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

India has faced pressure from the West to distance itself from Moscow after Russia invaded Ukraine. New Delhi has thus far resisted that pressure, citing its longstanding ties with Russia and its economic needs.

ALSO READ: PM Modi in Russia LIVE updates

Mr. Modi met Mr. Putin in Russia on Monday in the Prime Minister’s first visit since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. In a post on social media platform X, the Prime Minister said his talks with Mr. Putin “will surely go a long way in further cementing the bonds of friendship” between the two countries.

“I will look to Prime Minister Modi’s public remarks to see what he talked about but as I said, we have made quite clear directly with India our concerns about their relationship with Russia,” a State Department spokesperson said in a press briefing.

“And so we would hope (that) India and any other country when they engage with Russia would make clear that Russia should respect the U.N. Charter, should respect Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

ALSO READ: PM Modi’s Moscow visit: Five areas to watch closely

Russia has been India’s largest weapons supplier since the Soviet Union days. However, India has also been seeking other options, as the Ukraine war hobbled Russia’s ability to supply munitions and spares.

Washington in recent years has looked to woo New Delhi, with political analysts saying the U.S. sees India as a counter to China in the Asia-Pacific.

While the West has tried to isolate Putin, China, India and powers in the Middle East, Africa and Latin America have continued to build ties.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi with President of Russian Federation Vladimir Putin prior to their meeting at Hyderabad house in New Delhi on Monday.
| Photo Credit: V V Krishnan

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will pay a two-day visit to Russia from July 8 to 9 to hold the 22nd India-Russia annual summit that will review the entire range of multifaceted ties between the two countries.

After concluding his trip to Russia, Mr. Modi will travel to Austria, which will be the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to that country in 41 years, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said.

It will be Mr. Modi’s first trip to Russia in nearly five years. His last visit to Russia was in 2019 when he attended an economic conclave in the Far East city of Vladivostok.

The annual summit between the Prime Minister of India and the President of Russia is the highest institutional dialogue mechanism in the strategic partnership between the two countries.

So far, 21 annual summits have taken place alternately in India and Russia.

The last summit was held on December 6, 2021 in New Delhi. President Vladimir Putin had visited India to attend the summit.

The summit saw both sides sealing 28 MoUs and agreements besides coming out with a joint statement titled “India-Russia Partnership for Peace, Progress and Prosperity”.

Mr. Modi and Mr. Putin last held bilateral talks on the margins of a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) at Samarkand in Uzbekistan on September 16, 2022.

In the meeting, Mr. Modi had famously pressed Mr. Putin to end the conflict in Ukraine saying “today’s era is not of war”.

“I know today’s era is not of war. We discussed this issue on phone several times that democracy, diplomacy and dialogue touch the entire world,” Mr. Modi had said.

Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Mr. Modi has held several telephonic conversations with Mr. Putin and Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

In reflection of its strong friendship with Russia, India has not yet condemned Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine and it has been maintaining that the crisis must be resolved through diplomacy and dialogue.

India’s import of Russian crude oil has also gone up significantly notwithstanding the G7 price cap and increasing disquiet over the procurement in many Western countries.

In December 2022, the G7 grouping and its allies announced a cap on the price of Russian oil as part of a series of punitive measures against Moscow in view of its invasion of Ukraine. The price cap restricts countries to pay more than $60 a barrel.

From Russia, Mr. Modi will travel to Austria. He will be in Austria on July 9 and 10.

“This will be the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to Austria in 41 years. He will call on President of the Republic of Austria Alexander Van der Bellen and hold talks with Chancellor of Austria Karl Nehammer,” the MEA said.

“The Prime Minister and Chancellor will also address business leaders from India and Austria,” it said in a statement.

Mr. Modi will also interact with members of the Indian community in Moscow as well as in Vienna, the MEA said.

Russia’s state-owned reinsurer has given financial backing to three Russian insurance firms, allowing them to get Indian approval to provide marine insurance cover to tankers, two sources said, as Moscow seeks to facilitate trade with India amid Western sanctions.

A raft of sanctions by the U.S. and allies against Moscow over its Ukraine invasion, along with tighter scrutiny of Russian oil trade, has almost cut Russia off from the global network of service providers such as insurers and brokers.

Russian companies Sogaz Insurance, Alfastrakhovanie, and VSK Insurance, have joined Ingosstrakh as insurers approved by India for providing marine insurance cover, an order posted on Indian shipping regulator’s website showed.

India has approved the three new insurers after Russian National Reinsurance Company (RNRC) provided a financial guarantee, the two sources with direct knowledge of matter said.

This is the first time RNRC’s role in providing financial backing to the three Russian insurers to get accredited in India has been reported.

“With the backing of the Russian National Reinsurance Company, a wholly-owned entity of the Russian Government, these insurers boast robust financial support and stability,” one of the sources said.

Insurance is essential for maritime transport, particularly oil cargoes that require the highest safety standards due to the risk of spills.

Sogaz Insurance, Alfastrakhovanie and VSK Insurance representatives and an RNRC representative did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

RNRC, controlled by the Russian central bank, was sanctioned by the UK and European Union in 2023.

India’s Directorate General of Shipping did not respond to a Reuters email seeking comments.

“Ingosstrakh is not expanding its maritime insurance activities to India. Our relationship with India in the marine insurance industry has spanned over 57 years, dating back to 1967 when we opened our office in Mumbai,” an Ingosstrakh spokesperson said in an emailed statement.

The three Russian insurers, which specialise in protection and indemnity (P&I) insurance coverage, are not part of the Europe-based International Group, which is made up of twelve so-called P&I clubs.

The IG says it provides marine liability cover for approximately 90% of the world’s ocean-going shipping tonnage.

“A due procedure has been followed (by the Indian shipping regulator) for including these new entities in the list of non-IG companies that can provide insurance,” one of the two sources said.

Major Supplier

The Group of Seven (G7), the European Union and Australia have imposed a $60 per barrel price cap for Russian oil if Western services such as shipping and insurance are used.

The aim is to squeeze Russia’s oil revenues while keeping the supply to the market stable.

Russia has emerged as a major oil supplier to India, the world’s third biggest oil importer and consumer, as its oil is sold at a discount after Western nations halted purchases from Moscow.

The Indian government has said that the country abides by United Nations sanctions and does not follow those imposed by any other country.

A source from one of India’s refiners said banks are very strict in clearing payments for Russian oil to ensure that Russian crude is priced below the $60 per barrel cap.

The price cap mechanism bans Western companies from providing maritime services, including financing, insurance, and shipping for oil sold above the cap.

“Why would Russia like to forgo its revenue from insurance premiums and give it to the western insurers. It is not a small amount,” this source said.

“Even if Russia is legally allowed to use Western services they don’t want to use them,” he said.

“This also means they have to share details of their dealing with the (Western) service providers.”

Indian refiners buy Russian oil on delivered basis mostly from traders to avoid any liability arising due to sanctions before discharge of oil cargoes.

The accreditation of the three Russian entities is valid until Feb. 20 next year, but authorisation for Russia’s Ingosstrakh has been extended by five years to Feb. 20, 2029, an order posted on the website of India’s Directorate General of Shipping website showed.