India, Russia agree to boost trade ties

India and Russia agreed to boost trade ties Thursday as their foreign ministers met in Moscow, giving little indication that US President Donald Trump's hefty tariffs on India for buying Russian oil would disrupt their relations.

- REUTERS

Indian goods face additional US tariffs of up to 50%, among the highest imposed by Washington, due to New Delhi's increased purchases of Russian oil.

Western countries boycotting Russian crude say India's purchases are helping to fund Moscow’s war in Ukraine. But New Delhi says its purchases are purely commercial transactions, and accuses the US and European Union of double standards, noting that they continue significant trade with Moscow themselves.

Jaishankar said that relations between the two countries had been among the steadiest of major nations in the world since World War Two, referring to a close friendship going back to the days of the Soviet Union.