External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar held a meeting with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko on November 7, 2025, focusing on advancing multifaceted bilateral cooperation between India and Russia. Both leaders exchanged views on key regional, global, and multilateral issues, reflecting the breadth and depth of the bilateral partnership.​

India-Russia relations have been a cornerstone of New Delhi's foreign policy for over 75 years. This partnership, anchored in the "Declaration on India-Russia Strategic Partnership" signed in October 2000 during Russian President Vladimir Putin's visit, has evolved qualitatively, encompassing political, security, defence, trade, economy, science and technology, culture, and people-to-people ties.​

The strategic partnership was elevated to a "Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership" during the Russian President's 2010 visit to India. Since then, cooperation has expanded beyond traditional areas such as military, nuclear, and space cooperation to embrace new domains aligned with a multipolar world vision.​

A recent highlight in the bilateral defence cooperation was the 23rd Working Group Meeting of the India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Military Technical Cooperation and Defence Industry. Held in Moscow on 29th October 2025, it was co-chaired by Sanjeev Kumar, Secretary (Defence Production), India, and Andrey A Boytsov, First Deputy Director, FSMTC, Russia. The meeting concluded with the signing of a protocol outlining areas of mutual cooperation, collaboration, and growth.​

This engagement is part of ongoing efforts to deepen defence ties, enhance training exchanges, and explore new initiatives under the framework of the special and privileged strategic partnership. Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to shaping the momentum of India-Russia defence cooperation through focused engagements and knowledge sharing.​

The strategic ties also involve regular dialogue platforms, including annual summits and the 2+2 dialogue between the foreign and defence ministers of the two countries. This institutional framework supports broad-based cooperation across sectors and supports India’s goal of enhancing strategic autonomy and multipolarity in global affairs.​

In 2025, bilateral trade between India and Russia has reached record levels, and discussions continue on expanding economic ties further, including moves toward a Free Trade Agreement with the Eurasian Economic Union. These economic and technological engagements complement the political and defence dimensions of the partnership.​

Overall, the meeting between EAM Jaishankar and Deputy FM Rudenko reaffirms the steadfast and expanding India-Russia partnership, demonstrating a shared commitment to strategic cooperation and addressing evolving regional and global challenges through joint diplomatic and security frameworks.​

Based On ANI Report