India and Russia strengthen economic ties with plans to increase bilateral trade and facilitate the transfer of 70,000 Indian skilled workers this year, amid ongoing diplomatic efforts on Ukraine and energy diversification.
S. Jaishankar told a parliamentary consultative committee on Saturday that India’s relationship with Russia remains broad-based, with both sides looking to deepen trade, investment, energy ties and wider people-to-people links, according to people familiar with the meeting. The external affairs minister also set out New Delhi’s position on the war in Ukraine and said India continued to push for dialogue and diplomacy as the only route to peace.
One of the most immediate takeaways from the briefing was Russia’s agreement to receive about 70,000 skilled Indian workers this year, particularly for construction and logistics, the people said. That fits into a wider effort by both governments to widen economic engagement at a time when labour demand in Russia and India’s push for overseas employment are converging.
Jaishankar also described a shared ambition to rebalance trade, with a particular emphasis on boosting Indian exports to Russia in seven sectors: automobiles, pharmaceuticals, food, marine products, engineering goods, chemicals and textiles, according to those present. India has long run a sizeable trade deficit with Russia, largely because of energy imports, and recent industry data from the India Brand Equity Foundation shows bilateral trade reached $59.86 billion in FY26, with Indian exports at $4.49 billion and imports from Russia at $55.36 billion.
Energy remained a central part of the discussion. The minister told the panel that India’s priority is to protect the interests of domestic consumers and maintain diversified supply sources, the people said. That approach mirrors New Delhi’s broader strategy since the war in Ukraine began: preserving access to affordable fuel and fertiliser while avoiding overdependence on any single supplier. According to the India Brand Equity Foundation, the two countries are still working towards a bilateral trade target of $100 billion by 2030.
The committee meeting also covered India’s diplomatic efforts on Ukraine and the government’s attempts to secure the release of Indian nationals serving in the Russian military. Jaishankar said India had remained active in pressing for dialogue and diplomacy, and he referred to recent contacts with Russian and Ukrainian officials, including meetings on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York and his visit to Ukraine last month, according to the people familiar with the briefing. He also said the government had engaged Russia at the highest levels on early discharge for Indian nationals, with about 140 already freed and 55 others still being traced.
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