XIII India-Russia Business Dialogue results have been summed up

XIII India-Russia Business Dialogue was held in Moscow at the press centre of the Russia Today news agency. Participants in the plenary session discussed the prospects for an economic breakthrough in cooperation between Russia and India in various sectors.

Pavan Kapoor, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of India to the Russian Federation, noted that in 2021 mutual trade turnover between Russia and India reached 13 billion US dollars. "Since April this year, trade has increased mainly due to large oil shipments and fertiliser purchases by India," he said.

Kapoor called on Russian businessmen to interact more with Indian entrepreneurs in the pharmaceutical, agro-industry and agriculture, and chemical industries. "There is a need to conduct more trade transactions in national currencies. <...> It is already possible to open accounts in rupees in some Russian banks," the ambassador said.

Denis Alipov, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Russian Federation to the Republic of India, addressed the meeting online. He noted that over the 75 years of diplomatic relations, the countries have accumulated a solid baggage of outstanding achievements in the fields of nuclear power, education, science and technology.

"We can already say that we will meet the target set by the leaders of our countries of bringing the volume of trade turnover to $30 billion ahead of schedule"

Denis Alipov Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Russian Federation to the Republic of India

Denis Alipov stressed that such indicators were planned to be achieved by 2025, but by the end of 2022 this target will already have been met. “So far, this is happening due to an increase in the supply of hydrocarbon raw materials, fertilisers and a number of agricultural products to India ,” he said.

Dmitry Volvach, Deputy Minister of Economic Development of the Russian Federation, mentioned that there is also a positive trend in international tourism.

He noted that in 2021 Russia ranked second in the number of eVisas to India: "Nearly 17 thousand Russian tourists visited the country in the first nine months of this year and over 21 thousand visitors from India came to Russia. We estimate that up to half a million Indian citizens could come to Russia per year by 2027".

Sergey Cheremin, Minister of the Moscow Government, Head of the Department of Foreign Economic and International Relations of Moscow, Chairman of the Board of the Business Council for Cooperation with India, focused on the fact that Russian companies should participate in the implementation of Indian infrastructure projects.

"Today, India is developing very rapidly with its key infrastructure projects. The amount of money allocated for infrastructure projects is about $1.3 trillion over the next few years"

Sergey Cheremin Minister of the Moscow Government

He also said that they had discussed the possibility of having a representative of major Indian retail chains in the Russian market, as well as expanding the presence of Indian high-tech companies - those that set up industrial parks and business incubators:  "There are a lot of such companies in India today, and when we visit certain regions of the country, we have seen for ourselves how fast the hi-tech sector and engineering industry is developing in India. All this is also in demand in Russia."

According to Sergey Cheremin, many opportunities for inter-regional and inter-municipal cooperation are open.

"We were planning to assemble a special business mission from the regions and hold a conference in India - in Bangalore or Mumbai - in the first half of next year," he said.

XIII India-Russia Business Dialogue also included a session on "Russia-India Strategic Partnership: Development Prospects", during which participants discussed priority areas of cooperation between the two countries and the conditions for developing trade and economic relations. 

At 'The Formula for Success in the Indian Pharmaceutical Industry' session, speakers discussed the Indian government's support for the industry and the role of the two countries in the global healthcare architecture.

Participants in the 'National Branding as a Tool for International Cooperation' session talked about mechanisms to increase foreign trade turnover within BRICS. Wang Xiaoran, Commercial Director of the Department of Investments and Financial Markets China Chengtong International Investment Co. Ltd, said Russia, India and China play a key role in the international arena and the relationship between these countries influences the global economy. 

"The trade turnover between Russia and China has exceeded 170 billion US dollars. The goal is to reach $200 billion by 2025. I think that by working together we will meet this target ahead of schedule, i.e. before the end of 2023", he said.

On the margins of the event, speakers looked at the prospects for industrial cooperation between India and Russia. The forum also included a B2B session.

Photo: Department for External Economic and International Relations of Moscow