NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a high-stakes phone conversation on Friday, reaffirming their commitment to deepen India-Russia ties amid intensifying U.S. pressure over New Delhi’s energy dealings with Moscow.
This call comes on the heels of a major escalation by the US.
Just last week, US President Donald Trump announced a 25 per cent reciprocal tariff on Indian goods, which took effect on August 7. On Wednesday, the US administration doubled down by signing an executive order imposing an additional 25% tariff on Indian goods as a penalty for India's energy imports from Russia. This makes the total tariff on Indian goods 50%, one of the steepest ever levied on any trading partner by Washington.
"Had a very good and detailed conversation with my friend President Putin," Modi posted on social media platform X.
"We reviewed progress in our bilateral agenda and reaffirmed our commitment to further deepen the India-Russia Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership," he said.
The two leaders also discussed Russia's ongoing war in Ukraine. According to an official Indian readout, Putin briefed Modi on "the latest developments concerning Ukraine," while Modi reiterated India’s consistent call for "a peaceful resolution of the conflict."
The diplomatic timing is notable. The call comes a day after Modi spoke with Brazilian President Lula da Silva—another U.S. trading partner hit with a 50% tariff—and amid reports of an accelerating Trump-Putin summit, possibly as early as next week.
Adding to the geopolitical complexity, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov confirmed Thursday that a venue had been selected for the proposed Trump-Putin meeting. While the official location remains undisclosed, Putin suggested that the United Arab Emirates would be a "suitable" host.
In a further twist, Ushakov revealed discussions of a possible three-way summit involving Trump, Putin, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The Kremlin has yet to comment officially on that possibility. For his part, Putin expressed cautious openness to meeting Zelenskyy, but added that "certain conditions should be created," stressing that the current situation is "far" from ideal.
Meanwhile, Trump told reporters at the White House that he did not consider a Putin-Zelenskyy meeting a prerequisite for his own summit with the Russian leader.
Amid the shifting global dynamics, New Delhi’s balancing act is increasingly under the spotlight.
On the multilateral front, China has officially welcomed PM Modi’s participation in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Tianjin later this month. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said, “China welcomes Prime Minister Modi to China for the SCO Tianjin Summit,” adding that the event would mark the largest gathering since the SCO’s inception.
Jiakun further emphasised the SCO’s aim to foster “greater solidarity, coordination, and productiveness” among its members—setting the stage for discussions in Tianjin from August 31 to September 1.