Commerce Ministry Officials To Be Part Of Delegation To Russia; To Engage On Rupee Trade

Officials from the Ministry of Commerce will be a part of the delegation led by the Ministry of External Affairs travelling to Russia to hold discussions on advancing rupee trade mechanisms, people familiar with the matter said.

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will be heading for a two-day trip to Moscow next week, where he will meet Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and is likely to call on President Vladimir Putin.

Jaishankar’s engagements will also include co-chairing the 26th session of the India–Russia Intergovernmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific-Technological and Cultural Cooperation alongside Russia’s First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov.

The talks are expected to cover energy cooperation as well, with India defending its continued procurement of discounted Russian crude as a matter of national interest despite fresh US tariffs of up to 50% on Indian goods.

The two sides are also expected to finalise elements of Putin’s planned visit to India later this year and exchange views on the Ukraine conflict. New Delhi has consistently called for dialogue and diplomacy, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging both Moscow and Kyiv to engage directly to end the war.