Russian Dy PM to lead mega delegation to India comprising 25 Deputy Ministers & several CEOs

Russia’s deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov will lead the biggest ever industry-business delegation in recent years to India, comprising 25 deputy ministers and chief executives of private firms, on Monday-Tuesday amid a newfound momentum in business-industrial partnership.

Manturov will hold a slew of meetings, including with external affairs minister S Jaishankar, national security advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval and commerce minister Piyush Goyal, eyeing a larger share of Indian investments across the resource rich country, said officials. He may also meet finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman during his stay and hold joint business-related and inter-governmental commission with Jaishankar, they said.

Jaishankar and Manturov had held a brainstorming session in Moscow last November followed by a video meeting this March.


In 2022-23, bilateral trade touched nearly $40 billion, an all-time high, as Indo-Russian economic partnership often did not match political relationship earlier. Bilateral trade could touch $50 billion in 2023-24, with Russia emerging as one of India’s top trading partners, according to some estimates.

The focus of both sides is to encourage small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to explore each other’s markets, according to people familiar with the dynamics of bilateral business ties.

Trade and business ties received a big boost with two mega meetings at the end of March and early April in Delhi and the opening of an India office by the Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Russia’s NSA, Rosneft chief and Russian Far East development minister visited Delhi in March amid release of the latest foreign policy concept by President Vladimir Putin. The document hailed India-Russia ties and placed them on a par with Russia’s ties with China.

Sergey Katyrin, president of the Russian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, who visited Delhi in the first week of April, said at an event that an important feature of cooperation is the high interest in developing business ties with India on the part of Russian SMEs.

While there has been an increase in Indian exports, there are more demands across a slew of sectors, said people familiar with India-Russia ties. Russia is seeking bigger Indian investments in the Far East. Manturov’s meeting is also expected to focus on payments in national currencies for bilateral trade. Several Russian regions are seeking to enter into business partnerships with Indian states.