Many western countries including Britain are worried about the Strait of Hormuz. Many of their ships are stuck there. While on one hand the western countries are in tension due to Iran's move, on the other hand an important deal is going to be made between India and Russia in New Delhi. These agreements are going to be made during the visit of Russian Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov to New Delhi. Manturov arrived in New Delhi on Thursday morning for high-level discussions on defence, energy, trade and several other bilateral issues.
During his visit, he will hold talks with External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar and participate in other bilateral meetings. According to officials, the main focus of this visit is expected to be on strengthening bilateral relations. Especially in the areas of security and defense cooperation.
According to the Foreign Ministry, Manturov will also meet National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman during his visit. It is expected that the discussions will focus on cooperation in key areas like defence, security, energy and trade.
Ahead of Manturov's visit, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrei Rudenko met in New Delhi on March 30. Both sides reviewed the current status of bilateral relations and exchanged views on regional and global developments.
Both sides also took stock of the progress made in implementing the decisions taken during the India-Russia summit held in New Delhi in December last year. The main emphasis of this summit was on promoting economic cooperation between the two countries.
US President Trump tried to create a rift between India and Russia, but he was not successful. He had imposed extra tariff on India on purchasing oil from Russia. The move was intended to distance India from the Russian energy sector, which, according to US policymakers, would have helped resolve the Ukraine crisis.
