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In a defiant signal to the United States, Leader Vladimir Putin has told Prime Minister Narendra Modi that Russia stands ready to guarantee “unbroken” deliveries of oil to India. The announcement came during a summit where both heads of state met in Delhi and declared their relationship were “resistant to external pressure.”

A Signal For the West

Putin's comments, delivered Friday, seemed to be a direct challenge at the United States and its allies, who have tried to pressure New Delhi into curtailing its historical relations with Moscow. The backdrop follows previous Washington's moves, notably the imposition of import duties targeting New Delhi over its buying of discounted Russian crude.

“Moscow remains a dependable source of oil and gas and everything required for the development of India’s energy sector,” the Russian president remarked. “Moscow stands willing to continue guaranteeing the steady supply of energy for the rapidly growing Indian economy.”

The Indian leader, while not mentioning oil specifically, echoed the focus by stating that “a stable energy base has been a robust and important pillar of the India-Russia cooperation.”

Challenging Washington's Stance

In the lead-up to the meeting, via a television interview, Putin had questioned Washington's stance regarding India's energy purchases. He argued, “When Washington has the right to buy our atomic materials, why shouldn’t India claim the equivalent access?”

Putin's arrival represented his maiden visit to India following the start of the conflict in Ukraine, and the two nations made a deliberate attempt to display that the personal rapport between the two leaders was undisturbed.

An Unusual Welcome

Employing an unusual gesture, the Indian PM welcomed directly Putin upon his arrival. Both leaders embraced warmly like old friends before having a closed-door supper on Thursday evening.

He in his statement called India's relationship with Russia as “a lodestar” and added it was “built on mutual respect and profound confidence.”

Expanding Defence and Economic Partnerships

Friday's talks produced several key agreements in the fields of military and financial collaboration. A cornerstone agreement was the finalization of an strategic roadmap that runs to 2030, which sets a goal to boost mutual trade to a hundred billion USD each year by the end of the decade.

Additionally pledged to reshape their defence ties. Even as Russia is still India's largest supplier of defence equipment, its share has declined lately as India has sought broaden its supply base.

The official release emphasized cooperation in the joint production of advanced weapons platforms, though direct reference of deals for the Sukhoi Su-57 were omitted.

Overall, Moscow and Delhi affirmed that amid the “current complex, difficult, and unpredictable international environment, Russian-Indian ties stay strong to external pressure.”