EAM, Russian FM hold nearly hour-long bilateral
Insight Online News
New Delhi/Panaji, May 4 : External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar held an almost hour-long bilateral with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Panaji today, on the sidelines of the SCO Foreign Ministers’ Meeting.
The meeting comes amid the backdrop of an attempted drone strike on the Kremlin last night, which Russia claims was intended to kill President Vladimir Putin. Russia has accused the US of being behind the drone attack.
Russia has said that it reserves the right to retaliate, while Ukraine has denied involvement in the drone attack.
The meeting between EAM and Lavrov also comes amid a spike in India-Russia bilateral trade, which is breaking records.
At the end of 2022, bilateral trade reached a record high of $35.3 billion, which is 2.5 times more than in 2021.
EAM Jaishankar and Lavrov are meeting amid increased talks on de-dollarisation of global trade, with the issue forming a key subject among the BRICS nations of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.
Last month, EAM had held talks with visiting Russian Deputy PM Denis Manturov, and both had co-chaired the India-Russia Business Dialogue.
India has steered clear of voting against Russia in the UN on the Ukraine conflict, and called for dialogue and diplomacy to resolve the issue.
UNIINDIA
