Amid ongoing tensions in West Asia disrupting global energy markets, Russia has offered to ramp up supplies of crude oil and natural gas to India, as both nations agreed to further strengthen their bilateral partnership.
Energy cooperation emerged as a key focus during meetings between Russia’s First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov and India’s National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, along with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday, according to sources familiar with the discussions.
Manturov also met Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit.
A Russian statement highlighted that special emphasis was placed on cooperation in the oil and gas sector. Manturov assured that Russian companies have the capacity to steadily increase supplies of crude oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) to India.
The development comes at a time when the West Asia crisis has strained global energy markets, particularly due to disruptions in supply routes through the Strait of Hormuz—a critical corridor that handles nearly 20% of the world’s oil and LNG shipments. Rising tensions involving Iran have led to a surge in global energy prices. West Asia remains a major source of India’s energy imports.
The broader bilateral relationship was also reviewed during the India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technological and Cultural Cooperation (IRIGC-TEC), co-chaired by Manturov and Jaishankar. Discussions focused on boosting trade, investment, and industrial collaboration.
Both sides explored concrete steps to create favourable conditions for expanding bilateral trade. Russia also noted that it had increased fertiliser supplies to India by 40% by the end of 2025 and remains committed to meeting India’s future demand.
India’s Ministry of External Affairs stated that the talks covered a wide range of sectors including trade, energy, fertilisers, connectivity, mobility, as well as emerging areas like technology, innovation, and critical minerals.
The two countries also reviewed progress on decisions taken during the 23rd India-Russia Annual Summit held in December last year, attended by Russian President Vladimir Putin. Following that summit, both nations had outlined a five-year roadmap to strengthen economic ties and set a target of reaching $100 billion in annual trade by 2030.
Jaishankar and Manturov also exchanged views on regional and global developments, particularly the evolving situation in West Asia.
The Russian side further highlighted opportunities for deeper collaboration in civil nuclear energy, signalling strong prospects for expanding engagement in this strategic sector.