‘Works to India’s advantage,’ says Jaishankar on buying Russian oil; reiterates ‘return to dialogue’ on Ukraine crisis
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has said that India`s relationship with Russia has worked to its advantage and New Delhi would like to keep that going. Jaishankar, who is in Moscow, reaffirmed strong ties with Russia, describing the country as a steady and time-tested partner. Jaishankar made these remarks during a joint press conference along with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov in Moscow.
The duo on Tuesday held talks covering a range of bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest.
Jaishankar on India-Russia relations
The external affairs minister said his presence in Moscow to review bilateral cooperation speaks volumes about India-Russia cooperation. The minister also said that today`s meeting is devoted to exchanging perspectives on the international situation and also interests.
He also said that India and Russia engage each other in an increasingly multi-polar and re-balanced world. “Russia has been a steady partner and as I said any objective evaluation of the relationship over many decades would confirm that it has served both countries very well for many decades,” he added.
What Jaishankar on the Russia-Ukraine war
Jaishankar said that he exchanged views on international issues with Lavrov including the Ukraine conflict. “As PM conveyed to Russian President Putin this is not an era of war. Global economy is simply too interdependent for significant conflict anywhere not to have major consequences elsewhere,” he said.
The war in Ukraine which started in February has had a significant impact on global food security and has led to a sudden increase in crude prices following western sanctions on Moscow.
(With inputs from ANI)
