Putin's visit highlights Indian imports of discounted Russian oil in the face of US sanctions

NEW DELHI (AP) — Russian President Vladimir Putin will be in India this week for a summit aimed at deepening economic, defense and energy ties, a visit that will also test New Delhi’s efforts to balance relations with Moscow and Washington as the war in Ukraine grinds on.

Putin is scheduled to arrive on the state visit Thursday and hold talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday. They are expected to review progress on bilateral ties, discuss issues of mutual interest and sign interdepartmental and business agreements, both governments said.

India has continued to buy discounted Russian oil, despite warnings from Washington that this is partly keeping Moscow’s revenues afloat to fund the Ukraine war. U.S. President Donald Trump has imposed additional 25% tariffs on Indian imports, raising the total duties to 50%, in retaliation.

India has defended its imports as essential for meeting the growing energy needs of its 1.4 billion people.

Putin last visited India in 2021. Modi was in Moscow last year, and the two leaders briefly met in September in China during a Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit.

The India-Russia summit comes as the United States renews its push for a Ukraine peace plan and seeks broader cooperation from key partners.

Putin met U.S. presidential envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner in the Kremlin Tuesday to discuss the proposals, which critics have described as too heavily tilted toward Moscow. Yuri Ushakov, one of Putin's senior advisers, told journalists after the meeting that talks had been “productive” but said that much work still remained.

Modi has avoided condemning Russia for the fighting in Ukraine while emphasizing the need for a peaceful settlement.

Sreeram Sundar Chaulia, an international affairs expert at the Jindal School of International Affairs near New Delhi, said India has avoided taking on an overt mediating role because it could complicate its ties with both Russia and the U.S.

“But behind-the-scenes diplomacy by Modi is feasible, and has happened already to some extent,” Chaulia said.

Modi could try to nudge Putin “to accommodate some Ukrainian and European concerns to bring about a cessation of hostilities,” he added.

India and Russia will look at bolstering their bilateral relationship and are expected to deliver a package of documents centered around economic cooperation, trade facilitation, maritime, healthcare and media exchanges, according to Indian officials involved in the summit’s preparation. They spoke on condition of anonymity as the details aren’t public.

India is keen to increase exports of pharmaceuticals, agriculture and textiles to Russia and is seeking the removal of non-tariff barriers. New Delhi is also seeking long-term supplies of fertilizers from Moscow.

Another key area where the two countries are working to finalize an agreement is the safe and regulated migration of Indian skilled workers to Russia.

The U.S. has pressed India to halt purchases of discounted Russian oil, accusing New Delhi of helping fund Moscow’s war effort. In August, Trump imposed a 50% tariff on Indian imports to increase pressure over the issue.

India rejected the charge, saying it follows international sanctions and prioritizes its national interest and energy security. But its position could become more complicated after new U.S. sanctions on Russian oil giants Rosneft and Lukoil. Indian officials said the country will avoid buying oil from sanctioned producers, while keeping options open with companies not targeted by the restrictions.

“India will certainly underscore that there is no Indian desire to cut off energy supplies from Russia completely,” said Harsh Pant, vice president of foreign policy at the Observer Research Foundation, a New Delhi-based think tank.

Pant said future imports will depend “on the market forces and how effective sanctions are in weaning away Indian private sector or Indian state-run companies from Russian energy sources."

Energy cooperation is expected to feature prominently at the summit, including India’s investments in Russia’s Far East and expanded civil nuclear collaboration. The Kudankulam nuclear power plant in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, built with Russian assistance, remains the centerpiece of that partnership, and officials said talks continue on localized equipment manufacturing and potential joint projects in third countries.

India is expected to push Russia for faster delivery of two further S-400 surface-to-air missile systems, after receiving three under a 2018 deal worth about $5.4 billion. The delay has been tied to supply chain disruptions linked to the war in Ukraine.

Indian authorities are also likely to explore the possibility of acquiring additional S-400 units or an upgraded variant, though no contract or announcement is expected.

Indian defense planners say the S-400 proved effective during a brief military standoff with Pakistan in May.

“The meeting will focus on broader elements of institutional cooperation on defense between our two sides and will try to ensure that delivery delays are ended. Potentially, S-400 additional is not ruled out, but don’t expect any announcement during the visit,” India’s Defense Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh said at a security conference in New Delhi last week.

Talks are also expected on upgrading India’s Russian-made Su-30MKI fighter jets and accelerating deliveries of critical military hardware, as well as improving coordination on joint exercises and disaster relief.

Despite India diversifying its procurement of military hardware over the last few years, Russia continues to be its biggest supplier. Moscow is keen on selling its stealth fighter jet Su-57 to India, but New Delhi has kept its options open to other foreign suppliers as well.

FILE - Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi examine a hall prior to the award ceremony of Narendra Modi with the Order of St. Andrew the Apostle the First-Called in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, on July 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko, File)

FILE - Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, left, and Russian President Vladimir Putin stand in a hall in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, on July 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko, File)

FILE - Russian President Vladimir Putin, left, and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi greet each other before their meeting in New Delhi, India, on Dec. 6, 2021. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup, File)

FILE - Russian President Vladimir Putin, right, and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, left, look at a model of a Leader nuclear-powered icebreaker as they visit the Zvezda shipyard in the town of Bolshoi Kamen, Russia, on Sept. 4, 2019. (Mikhail Klimentyev, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)

FILE - Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, right, hugs Russian President Vladimir Putin before their meeting in New Delhi, India, on Oct. 5, 2018. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup, File)

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union said on Monday it will consider how to help keep the Strait of Hormuz open as energy and commodity prices rise in the third week of war between Iran, Israel and the United States.

“It is in our interest to keep the Strait of Hormuz open, and that’s why we are also discussing what we can do in this regard from the European side,” said Kaja Kallas, the EU’s foreign policy chief, ahead of a meeting of the 27-nation bloc’s foreign ministers in Brussels on Monday.

U.S. President Donald Trump has asked allies — including France, China, Japan, South Korea and Britain — to help secure the strait for global shipping.

Kallas said the EU could expand its Aspides naval mission to protect shipping in the Red Sea up into the Persian Gulf, or it could form a “coalition of the willing” with member nations contributing military capacity on an ad hoc basis.

The war in Iran, sparked on Feb. 28 airstrikes by Israel and the U.S., has driven up energy prices worldwide, with brent crude up more than 40%. But the conflict has also disrupted the wider global supply chain beyond oil, affecting everything from pharmaceuticals from India, semiconductors from Asia and oil-derived products like fertilizers that come from the Middle East.

Cargo ships are stuck in the Gulf or making a much longer detour around the southern tip of Africa. Planes carrying air cargo out of the Middle East are grounded. And the longer the war drags on, the more likely that there will be shortages and price increases on a wide range of goods.

France has said it is working with countries — President Emmanuel Macron mentioned partners in Europe, India and Asia — on a possible international mission to escort ships through the strait but has stressed it must be when “the circumstances permit,” when fighting has subsided.

German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul, told ARD television: “Will we soon be an active part of this conflict? No.”

Luxembourg Foreign Minister Xavier Bettel said the EU remains uncommitted to any military action.

“The fact is, for the moment, the EU is not directly part of the situation. So we need to decide if we are going to be part or not. That’s an important decision," Bettel said.

Operation Aspides was formed to thwart attacks to shipping in the Red Sea by Somali pirates and Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels, who have yet to join the current fray. Saudi Aramco manages a pipeline network that bypasses the Strait of Hormuz to deliver oil to the Red Sea port city of Yanbu.

“If we want to have security in this region, then it would be easiest to actually already use the operation that we have in the region and maybe change a bit,” Kallas she said. “There is also talk of coalition of the willing in this regard, but we also need to see what could be the fastest to provide this opening for the Strait of Hormuz, but of course, as you can see, it’s not easy.”

The EU is anxious that a potential refugee crisis in Iran will develop if the war continues.

“Although for now, the conflict has not translated into immediate migratory flows toward the EU, what the future holds remains unclear and necessitates the full mobilization of every migration diplomacy tool we have at our disposal,” said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in a statement Sunday.

European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas speaks with the media as she arrives for a meeting of EU foreign ministers at the European Council building in Brussels, Monday, March 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)