India and Russia will need to guide its business communities in achieving the target of $30 billion worth of annual bilateral trade and $50 billion worth of investments by 2025 and the pacts reached in a number of areas, including defence, on Monday, will help in the direction, said Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“Co-development and co-production through ‘Make in India’ programme will strengthen our co-operation in the the area of defence. Our ties are also expanding in the areas of space and civil nuclear,” the PM said at the 21st India-Russia bilateral summit in New Delhi on Monday.
Bilateral trade between the two countries stood at $8.14 billion in 2020-21.
India and Russia signed an agreement on joint production of about six lakh AK-203 assault rifles at a manufacturing facility in Uttar Pradesh’s Amethi, on Monday. The two countries had also signed the S-400 advanced missiles system deal, estimated at about ₹35,000 crore, in 2018, which is now reportedly ready to be delivered.
Putin’s remarks
Russian President Vladimir Putin, on Monday, said Russians perceived India as a great power, a friendly nation and a time-tested friend. “The relations between our countries are growing and I am looking into the future," Putin said in his opening remarks.
Putin also referred to the intensified cooperation between the countries in trade, investment, environment and technology. “Right now, the mutual investments stand at about 38 billion. More investments are coming from the Russian side,” Putin said.
India-Russia ties have not been adversely affected by Covid-19 challenges and the two countries have closely cooperated in numerous areas such as vaccine trials and production, and humanitarian aid, Modi said. The Russian Sputnik V vaccine, which is one of the safest and most effective vaccines in the world (as demonstrated by the real-world data from Hungary, San Marino, Argentina, Serbia, Bahrain, Mexico, UAE and others) is already used in India following an emergency use authorization in April 2021. Sputnik V became the first foreign-made vaccine used in India.
The Russian President said that the two countries are concerned about everything that has to do with terrorism.
“I mean the fight against terrorism and the fight against drug trafficking and organised crime. And with that regard, we are concerned about the developments in Afghanistan,” the Russian President said.