In a global exclusive, Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks to India Today ahead of his arrival in New Delhi for the 23rd India-Russia Annual Summit. Anchored by Executive Editor Shreya Dhoundial,

Vladimir Putin begins a two-day visit to India today, his first since the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, during which he and Narendra Modi will sign deals on defence and energy. Western efforts to drive a wedge between them have been fruitless.

A decline in India's oil imports from Russia may last only for "a brief period" as Moscow plans to boost supplies to New Delhi, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov told Indian journalists on Tuesday. India,

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will host a private dinner for Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday, hours after he lands in Delhi to expand the overall bilateral strategic and economic partnership.

India has been snapping up discounted Russian crude for three years, but U.S. sanctions that take effect on Friday are expected to end the lucrative trade.

The complementarity between India’s global export strengths and Russia’s demand profile offers huge potential as at present India’s share in Russia’s imports remains modest around 2.3%, officials said on anonymity. New Delhi and Moscow have strong and time-tested bilateral relationships, which can be leveraged to boost two-way trade, they added.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has long had to balance ties with Russia and the US as India sticks to its policy of strategic autonomy. That task has been more challenging this year amid pressure from the Trump administration to stop buying Russian oil.

In a big boost to defence ties, Russia has approved the Reciprocal Exchange of Logistic Support (Relos) agreement with India, ahead of Vladimir Putin’s visit to New Delhi. This pact allows mutual logistical support for military operations,