March 28, 2025 (EIRNS)—Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar each addressed by video the March 27 conference in Moscow, entitled “Russia and India: Toward a New Bilateral Agenda,” sponsored by the Russia International Affairs Council and by India’s embassy in Moscow. Both leaders confirmed that maintaining a strong strategic partnership between them is a major foreign policy priority, in what Jaishankar described as “geopolitically complex landscape,” adding that both nations have shown a commitment to “each other’s core interests.” In his address, Lavrov echoed that, asserting that their bilateral relationship has “passed the test of time” as it is based on a “shared respect for one another and taking into account each other’s interests.” Both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Vladimir Putin have contributed to this process, he said. Modi traveled to Russia as his first overseas trip following his reelection last year, and now plans for Putin’s official trip to India later this year are underway at Modi’s invitation.
Moreover, he added, both nations have “converging views” on the emergence of a multipolar world order as a major asset. Both agree on the need to “insert more democracy” into international relations, and to give the Global South a bigger say in economic governance. This is a view shared by all nations of the Global Majority. Russia particularly shares India’s foreign policy concept and slogan that “the world is one family,” Lavrov explained, which “stands for promoting international cooperation for improving the wellbeing for the entire humankind by balancing the interests of all countries.” He thanked India for always maintaining a “balanced approach to the Ukraine crisis” and its call to settle it through dialogue.
