In this picture released on Nov. 18, 2025, Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks with Chairman of the Naval Council of Russia Nikolai Patrushev during a meeting. Photo: @DrSJaishankar/X via PTI Photo
Ahead of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to Delhi, expected by the end of the year, India and Russia on Tuesday (Nov 18, 2025) intensified high-level consultations.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Nikolai Patrushev, chairman of Russia’s Naval Committee, and discussed an annual summit with Mr Putin in December. In Moscow, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar met President Putin on the sidelines of the 24th meeting of the Council of Heads of Government of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).
“The parties discussed various issues of Russian-Indian cooperation, especially in the maritime sector. Both sides emphasized their common interest in deepening interaction between Russia and India to strengthen their maritime capabilities,” a statement from the Russian Embassy in Delhi said.
Mr. Patrushev, who is also an adviser to Mr. Putin, led the Russian team at Russia-India consultations on maritime cooperation in New Delhi on November 17. He met National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, who visited Moscow in the first week of August and met President Putin.
In his remarks at the SCO meeting, Mr Jaishankar stressed the importance of “diversification” against a backdrop of “supply-side risks” that have risen globally in recent months.
The minister reiterated India’s right to fight terror attacks. “We must never forget that the SCO was established to fight the three evils of terrorism, separatism and extremism. These threats have become more serious in recent years. It is imperative that the world show zero tolerance to terrorism,” Mr Jaishankar said, adding that there should be “no whitewashing” of terrorism.
Published – 18 Nov 2025 22:45 IST
