Manturov explained during an interview with ‘Sputnik India’ Russia’s readiness to expand strategic cooperation with New Delhi in several key sectors, most notably Arctic shipbuilding, civil aviation, and the development of new logistics corridors, in addition to supporting the entry of Indian products into the Russian market. The Arctic is a region with unique shipping characteristics, where geography, climate, and geophysical conditions create unique requirements for the fleet. To ensure navigation under the challenging hydro-meteorological conditions of the Arctic, high-quality Arctic-class ships such as oil tankers, bulk carriers, container ships, and LNG carriers are needed. Joint production of Arctic-class ships could represent a promising area of cooperation. Currently, a dialogue on this topic is ongoing within the specially formed working group of the Russian-Indian intergovernmental commission for trade, economic, scientific, technical, and cultural cooperation. The Russian side is led by the state-owned company ‘Rosatom,’ while the Indian side is led by the Ministry of Ports, Shipping, and Waterways of the Government of India.
The Indian aviation market is experiencing dynamic growth, and India is working to enhance its industrial capabilities within the framework of the ‘Make in India’ initiative. We have a long history of successful cooperation in aviation, such as the MiG-21 and Su-30MKI fighters, which are produced under license in India and form an important part of its air force. The trade volume between Russia and India has increased approximately sevenfold over the past five years, and the leaders of both countries have set an ambitious target of reaching $100 billion by 2030, which requires mutual trade and investment flows.
Given its own industrial development plans, along with the global redistribution of trade flows related to tariff wars mentioned, India can become an important partner in several categories of demanded products. These are the categories where Indian manufacturers’ capabilities allow for replacing products previously imported from unfriendly countries, ensuring high quality and competitive prices. Among the sectors where we see great opportunities are chemical industries, raw materials, equipment and components, textiles, consumer goods, and food products.
We are ready to fully encourage interaction between the business communities of the two countries, in addition to their regular participation in major conferences and exhibitions held in Russia and India. For Indian manufacturers to showcase their products and build trade relations with Russian consumers, they should make greater use of industrial platforms, especially our leading industrial exhibition ‘Innoprom’ in Yekaterinburg, as well as the Russian-Indian forum coinciding with President Vladimir Putin’s visit to New Delhi on December 4–5.
India is a priority economic partner for Russia, not only bilaterally but also multilaterally within organizations such as the Eurasian Economic Union, BRICS, and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. Within these platforms, an active dialogue is underway aimed at forming an integrated Eurasian transport network that ensures stability and reliability in supply flows. In this context, the current routes, including those passing through the Suez Canal, alongside new corridors like the ‘North-South’ international transport route and the eastern route through the Russian Far East ports, are of great importance. Regarding the ‘North-South’ corridor, in which our countries actively participate, we welcome the concrete steps taken by our Indian colleagues to develop the Iranian port of Chabahar, a major port in the Gulf, located at the intersection of the corridor. We consider the ‘North-South’ corridor a priority Eurasian transport corridor, playing a crucial role in diversifying and reducing transit time for goods between Russia, India, and the Gulf countries.
The Kremlin’s statement said: ‘At the invitation of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin will make a state visit to the Republic of India on December 4 and 5.’
