New Delhi: First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Denis Manturov and Minister of External Affairs of India Dr S.Jaishankar co-chaired the 25th Session of the Intergovernmental Russian-Indian Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technical and Cultural Cooperation.
As per Russian embassy release, over the past 5 years, the volume of mutual trade between the two countries has grown more than 5 times, and by 9% in the first 8 months of this year. The tasks of further expanding the range of goods and reducing the trade imbalance will be enshrined in the economic cooperation development programme till 2030.
The First Deputy Prime Minister confirmed the intention to conclude a free trade agreement between the EAEU and India, as well as a bilateral agreement on services and investments. He drew attention to the importance of expanding cooperation between Russian and Indian banks. Today, the share of settlements in national and alternative currencies reaches almost 90%.
"It is equally important to coordinate efforts in the transport sector. We are interested in expanding direct air traffic between our countries. We expect to increase the frequency of flights, develop the route network, and resume flights of Indian air carriers," noted Denis Manturov.
Special emphasis at the meeting was placed on the development of bilateral interaction in the spheres of energy, engine building and microelectronics, chemistry, metallurgy, digital technologies, railway engineering, as well as space exploration.
The parties also discussed humanitarian cooperation, in particular in higher education. Denis Manturov underscored the need to simplify the procedure for mutual recognition of educational documents and academic degrees.
Following the meeting, the First Deputy Prime Minister of Russia and the Minister of External Affairs of India signed the final protocol of the 25th Session of the Russian-Indian IGC.
MEA said, The agenda of the 25th Session of the the India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technological and Cultural Cooperation (IRIGC-TEC) included cooperation in trade, investments, hydrocarbons, nuclear energy, connectivity, agriculture, science & technology, IT, pharmaceuticals, healthcare, fertilizers, education, culture and other areas. The two Co-Chairs expressed satisfaction at the continued progress in bilateral engagement and cooperation.
First Deputy Prime Minister Manturov’s other bilateral engagements included a call on the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi and meetings with the Minister of Finance and Minister of Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman, and National Security Adviser Ajit Doval.
The exchange of views on matters of mutual interest during Manturov’s visit to India will contribute towards developing better understanding between the countries and help expedite implementation of bilateral priorities, as well as further strengthen the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia, said MEA.
