Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin will hold a bilateral summit in New Delhi on Friday, ahead of the 18th BRICS Summit. The meeting is expected to cover a wide-ranging agenda, including defence cooperation, energy security, trade mechanisms, and the ongoing Ukraine conflict.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov confirmed the bilateral dialogue during a virtual news briefing from Moscow, highlighting the close personal rapport and pragmatic working relationship between the two leaders. The talks will serve as the prelude to the two-day BRICS Summit on September 12-13, hosted under India's chairship with the theme 'Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability'.
Defence: Su-57 stealth aircraft and joint manufacturing
At the top of the bilateral agenda is Russia's formal proposal to supply its advanced Su-57 fifth-generation stealth fighter aircraft to the Indian Air Force (IAF). The single-seat, twin-engine multirole fighter has long been a subject of negotiation between Moscow and New Delhi.
India previously participated in the Joint Perspective Multi-Role Fighter (PMF) programme, an Indian variant of the Su-57, before stepping back to focus on indigenous fighter development, including the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) project. However, with lingering operational shortfalls in IAF squadron strength and evolving air power dynamics in South Asia, Moscow has revitalised its offer.
The current dialogue is expected to touch upon technology transfer, localised assembly under India's 'Make in India' initiative, and customisation to integrate indigenous Indian weapons systems and avionics. Russia has been willing to grant India deep source-code access for mission computers, allowing full integration of indigenous ordnance such as the Astra Beyond-Visual-Range (BVR) air-to-air missile and the BrahMos-NG air-launched cruise missile.
Proposals for joint manufacturing via Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) may utilise existing production facilities previously dedicated to Su-30MKI fighter jets, along with the establishment of localised Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) hubs in India. Another defence item on the agenda is reviewing the operational scaling of the Indo-Russian Rifles Private Limited (IRRPL) plant in Amethi, Uttar Pradesh, for AK-203 assault rifles, alongside expansion plans for the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile project.
Energy: Next-generation nuclear reactors and oil trade
The Kremlin confirmed that Russia is awaiting high-level negotiations regarding the construction of additional Russian-designed nuclear power plants in India. Rosatom, Russia's state atomic energy corporation, is currently constructing additional units at the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KKNPP) in Tamil Nadu, which utilises VVER-1000 reactors.
During the Friday meeting, Modi and Putin are expected to review proposals for a second site dedicated to Russian-designed nuclear reactors in India. The discussion will also cover allocating a new coastal location to host six high-capacity VVER-1200 or VVER-TOI nuclear reactor units. Joint research, development, and commercial deployment of land-based and floating Small Modular Reactors to assist India's industrial decarbonisation goals also fits the agenda.
Building upon the successful joint construction model of the Rooppur Nuclear Power Plant in Bangladesh, joint nuclear infrastructure projects across Africa and Southeast Asia could also be explored.
As far as oil is concerned, the talks coincide with heightened rhetoric from Washington regarding punitive economic measures aimed at curtailing Russian energy revenues. The United States has proposed levying 100 per cent tariffs on third countries purchasing Russian crude oil, a measure directly targeting major buyers like India and China.
India has consistently maintained that its crude oil imports are guided primarily by national energy security, market realities, and the obligation to provide affordable fuel to its 1.4 billion citizens. Modi is expected to reinforce India's policy of strategic autonomy, while both leaders review sovereign shipping logistics, insurance frameworks, and payment corridors designed to insulate bilateral oil trade from external sanctions and tariff pressures.
De-dollarisation: National currency transactions
Peskov highlighted that Russia has achieved a major milestone in financial decoupling, revealing that 90 percent of all transactions between Russia and its BRICS partner nations are now conducted in national currencies rather than the US dollar or euro. Moscow has clarified its position on financial instruments, stating that the push for national currencies is a practical defence mechanism rather than an ideologically driven initiative.
One of the core financial mechanisms under negotiation includes addressing trade imbalances by facilitating avenues for Russian entities to reinvest accumulated Indian rupees from Special Vostro Accounts into Indian infrastructure, real estate, manufacturing, and capital markets. Linking the Reserve Bank of India's Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and Structured Financial Messaging System (SFMS) with the Bank of Russia's System for Transfer of Financial Messages (SPFS) and Mir payment network is also on the agenda.
Advancing discussions on BRICS Pay, an interoperable digital payment framework designed to facilitate seamless commercial transactions across member states, remains on the cards for the entire weekend.
Connectivity: Trade corridors across Eurasia
To ensure long-term commercial resilience, Modi and Putin will review progress on strategic transport corridors connecting the Indian subcontinent with the Eurasian landmass and the Russian Far East.
International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC): The INSTC is a 7,200-kilometre multi-modal transportation network encompassing ship, rail, and road routes. It remains central to bypassing traditional maritime chokepoints. Talks will focus on finalising the missing rail links in Iran, such as the Rasht-Astara line, to seamlessly connect Mumbai to Saint Petersburg via the Caspian Sea.
Eastern Maritime Corridor (Chennai-Vladivostok): The Chennai-Vladivostok Eastern Maritime Corridor drastically reduces sea transit times between India and the Russian Far East from 40 days to approximately 20-22 days. The leaders will evaluate measures to increase container traffic, streamline customs clearance, and expand bulk shipment capacity for coking coal, crude oil, and liquefied natural gas (LNG).
Northern Sea Route (NSR): With Arctic ice receding, Russia has actively invited Indian participation in developing infrastructure along the Northern Sea Route. The Friday summit will assess prospective Indian investments in Arctic port development, shipbuilding, and icebreaker fleet construction to secure access to energy resources.
Peace: Ukraine conflict
The Friday summit will mark the second face-to-face interaction between Modi and Putin in under two weeks, following their bilateral talks on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, on August 31.
In Bishkek, Modi reiterated India's firm stance on peaceful conflict resolution, stating that 'every step taken towards peace fills the whole of humanity with new hope' and stressing that 'the land of Gandhi and Buddha has one message, the path of peace.' Moscow has publicly welcomed India's constructive role and willingness to contribute to efforts aimed at finding a peaceful resolution to the ongoing Ukraine war.
During their New Delhi interaction, Putin is expected to brief Modi on recent battlefield developments, communications with European actors, and Moscow's prerequisites for a sustained settlement. Modi will likely reiterate India's readiness to facilitate dialogue, advocate for human-centric diplomacy, and stress the severe collateral impacts of protracted conflict on global food, fuel, and fertiliser security across the Global South.
India's 2026 BRICS presidency
The Modi-Putin bilateral dialogue serves as the strategic preamble to the 18th BRICS Summit, taking place at the Bharat Mandapam convention centre in Pragati Maidan on September 12-13. India assumed the BRICS presidency on January 1, marking its fourth tenure at the helm of the economic bloc.
Over the course of the year, India hosted more than 350 meetings and ministerial engagements across 25 cities, culminating in the Mumbai meeting of BRICS Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors on September 9-10. This summit marks a milestone as the expanded BRICS entity operates with 11 full member nations: founding members Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa, and expanded members Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and Indonesia.
In addition to the core 11 members, the summit will host delegations from designated BRICS Partner Countries, including Belarus, Bolivia, Cuba, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Nigeria, Thailand, Uganda, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam. United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres and BIMSTEC Chair Tarique Rahman, Prime Minister of Bangladesh, are also among the high-profile outreach invitees.
What next
Beyond the Putin bilateral, attention is focused on the expected presence of Chinese President Xi Jinping. Should Xi attend in person, it would mark his first trip to India since the 2019 informal summit in Mamallapuram, Tamil Nadu. A potential bilateral meeting between Modi and Xi on the margins of the BRICS Summit would offer an opportunity to review border disengagement progress along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and assess broader regional economic stabilisation.
Meanwhile, the personal rapport between Modi and Putin continues to be marked by diplomatic warmth, mutual trust, and frequent high-level engagement that has helped sustain India-Russia ties through shifting global alignments. Since Modi assumed office in 2014, the two leaders have met in person 18 times across bilateral annual summits, informal retreats, and multilateral platforms including BRICS, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), and previously the G20.
Their chemistry is frequently demonstrated through unscripted protocol breaks, one-on-one dinners, and shared transport during state visits, reflected in Putin conferring Russia's highest civilian honour, the Order of Saint Andrew the Apostle, on Modi in 2019 for his contributions to the strategic partnership. This strong personal link has enabled both capitals to maintain open communication channels, swiftly address trade and defence bottlenecks, and manage friction points while balancing national interests.