A partnership between an India that has an 8% growth rate for multiple decades ahead, and a Russia that is a key natural resources provider and a major technology leader, serve both sides and the world well, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Monday at the India-Russia Business Forum in Mumbai.
Addressing the event, attended by Russian First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov, EAM said that with the world moving towards ever greater multi-polarity and with Russia consciously focusing more deeply on Asia since 2022, it has created many more avenues of cooperation between the two nations.
He flagged 10 significant developments that both sides need to take note of:
*Our bilateral trade is today at USD 66 billion. This makes the goal of reaching USD 100 billion by 2030 more than realistic.
* The balance of trade however needs urgent redressal since it is so one-sided. It is imperative that non-tariff barriers and regulatory impediments are speedily addressed for this to happen.
*The India-Eurasian Economic Union trade in goods negotiations commenced in March this year. We need to vigorously take it forward.
*The first ever bilateral Investment Forum took place in Moscow in April 2024. We also need to expedite negotiations on the Bilateral Investment Treaty.
*The programme for cooperation in regard to the Russian Far-East from 2024-29 was signed in July during the Annual Summit. It encourages other related activities including in the connectivity sphere.
*Mutual settlement of trade in national currencies is of great importance, especially in the current circumstances. Special Rupee Vostro Accounts are right now an effective mechanism. However, even in the short run, a better trade balance with national currency settlements is the answer.
*Signing of a bilateral agreement between the customs authorities of the two countries in May 2024 on Authorized Economic Operators, has had a big impact on smoothening the ease of doing trade.
*The three connectivity initiatives between us – INSTC, Chennai-Vladivostok Corridor and the Northern Maritime Route – all need continued attention, if we are to realize full potential.
*A growing Russian appreciation of Make In India as a program to deepen business will certainly help to take forward our cooperation in many many domains.
*And finally, I flag to your attention, the importance of non-economic domains, such as education and film as contributions to a larger societal but also an economic connect between us.
EAM said the above issues are expressions of the task that Leaders of India and Russia have given during the Annual Summit to develop a Comprehensive Economic Partnership.
“In fact, they have also charged us with developing a Programme of Economic Cooperation till 2030, on which work is currently underway.”
He said there are concerns regarding banking and payment related issues, logistical challenges like shipping, insurance and reinsurance as well as market access, and added that both sides have to find solutions that work to the comfort level of those actually involved in trade.
EAM said that their two economies are complementary in nature and their approach is not transactional but aimed at building long-term partnerships. In energy domains such as oil, gas, coal or uranium, India will always be a major player in the international markets. This applies as well to the demand for fertilizers of various kinds. Constructing a mutually beneficial arrangement will help us both address the volatility and the uncertainty of our times, he added.
He also said that demographic unevenness has created demand and supply imbalances across the world, and that India and Russia can be partners in this regard too. “It would require a focused initiative that customizes human resources for the Russian market. That is best done with the active participation of businesses,” EAM said.
Tomorrow the two sides meet in New Delhi, for the 25th Session of the Intergovernmental Russian-Indian Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technical and Cultural Cooperation.
