External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will visit Russia on 7-8 November to meet his counterpart Sergey Lavrov and other Russian leaders to review bilateral ties as well as global developments amid the ongoing conflict in Ukraine.
Announcing the visit, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said it was in continuation of the regular exchange of visits between the two countries.
Apart from the Russian foreign minister, Jaishankar will meet the Russian deputy prime minister and the minister of trade and industry. Jaishankar last visited Russia in July 2021, followed by Lavrov’s visit to New Delhi this year.
During the talks between the two sides, India is likely to again urge Moscow to return to the path of diplomacy to resolve the ongoing conflict.
Earlier this month, Jaishankar had also said that targeting infrastructure and causing civilian deaths was not acceptable in any part of the world.
Despite Western pressure, India has so far not directly condemned Russia for the military offensive in Ukraine while maintaining that the war was not in anyone’s interest. India has, meanwhile, increased its oil imports also from Russia.