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During a defiant signal to the West, Leader Vladimir Putin has told PM Narendra Modi that Russia stands ready to maintain “continuous” supplies of oil to India. These remarks came as the two leaders met in Delhi and asserted their bilateral ties were “resilient to outside influence.”

A Statement Directed at the Western Countries

This affirmation, issued after the annual summit, appeared to be targeted at western countries, which have sought to pressure New Delhi into curtailing its close relations with Moscow. This comes is in response to earlier US actions, including additional import duties on India because of its buying of discounted Russian crude.

“Russia is a dependable source of energy resources and anything required for the advancement of India’s economy,” the Russian president said. “Russia is prepared to continue securing the consistent flow of fuel for the booming Indian economy.”

Modi, though he did not mentioning oil specifically, reinforced the theme by saying that “energy security has been a strong and vital foundation of the India-Russia alliance.”

Challenging Washington's Stance

Prior to the summit, during a media interview, Putin had criticized American pressure on India's energy purchases. He argued, “If the US can claim the privilege to buy our uranium, why shouldn’t India have the identical right?”

The visit was his initial visit to India following the onset of the war in Ukraine, and both sides made a visible show to display that the friendship between the heads of state remained intact.

A Warm Welcome

Taking an rare gesture, the Indian PM personally greeted Putin as he disembarked. Both leaders exchanged a hearty embrace as longtime companions before having a closed-door supper on Thursday evening.

The Indian prime minister later described India's partnership with Russia as “a beacon” and added it was “founded on reciprocal esteem and profound confidence.”

Expanding Strategic Ties

The meeting resulted in multiple significant pacts regarding defence and financial collaboration. A major outcome was the completion of an economic cooperation programme aimed at 2030, which targets to boost mutual trade to a hundred billion USD each year by the end of the decade.

Furthermore pledged to recalibrate their strategic cooperation. While Russia continues to be India's primary supplier of defence equipment, this role has diminished lately as India has sought diversify its procurement.

The joint statement stressed cooperation in the co-development of advanced military systems, though explicit reference of purchases such as the fifth-generation aircraft were omitted.

Overall, both nations affirmed that amid the “ongoing challenging, tense, and unpredictable global landscape, their relationship remain strong to outside forces.”