India's partnership with Russia is set to strengthen further due to the effective leadership of Russia during its BRICS presidency, Naveen Kapur, the representative of the chairman of the Indian Chapter of the BRICS Business Council, told Sputnik in Moscow.
"I would say the relation between India and Russia has been very strong historically. But with each meeting that we do with Russia, the strength is only increasing between the relations between our countries. And we understand each other quite well over the years. So, I am sure trade, commerce, everything will enhance after this chairship of Russia, which is very well managed," Kapur said.
The official predicted that ties between India and Russia, two of the founding BRICS members, would continue to increase following the addition of several more countries to the fold. He highlighted the stability of bilateral trade and the potential for future growth.
"Well, we are on a very stable footing. Like I said, Russia-India trade relations have been very steady over the years. So, it will only strengthen with the new members joining in," he said.
Kapur confirmed that the Indian Chapter of the BRICS Business Council would attend next week's BRICS summit in Kazan, scheduled for October 22-24.
"Yes, I will be there. Actually, the chairman of the BRICS Business Council from India, I am his Sherpa. His name is Mr. Onkar Kanwar. He is joining us in Kazan. So, I will be accompanying along with my colleague Anshuman [Khanna]," Kapur said.
Kapur expressed confidence that Brazil's presidency of BRICS in 2025 would further strengthen cooperation among the expanded group of BRICS member states.
"Now we are ten. So, with that, we will be more expanding. And now, in terms of total trade also, with the new members coming in, we contribute a much significant higher percentage of trade with the world. So, I am sure it will enhance with Brazil coming in," he said.
Furthermore, this week's BRICS Business Forum in Moscow looked at how to increase connectivity among member states in such critical sectors as transport, finance and information technology, Kapur told Sputnik.
"See, what I've been assigned in the forum is to discuss transport and logistics. So, basically, we are discussing how to bring complementarities and see how we can get better connectivity to BRICS countries through the logistics mechanisms. So, that is my main objective of the forum at the moment," Kapur said.
Kapur highlighted the role of agriculture in the discussions, saying that countries like Brazil were sharing valuable agricultural experiences to promote climate-smart practices.
"Then we are looking at different manufacturing; we're looking at artificial intelligence, new-age technologies, how we can share our experiences between BRICS countries. That is what we are discussing," Kapur said.
Apart from that, Kapur said that India's economic ties with Russia were growing, particularly in the energy and technology sectors.
"In fact, India is importing a lot of oil from Russia. In a very big way. And we are also in the process of doing more IT and technology-oriented towards Russia from the Indian side," Kapur said, commenting on potential agreements that could be signed at the BRICS summit in Kazan.
Kapur also called pharmaceuticals a crucial area in India's trade with Russia.
"Pharmaceuticals, which is very big. Because India is the pharma capital of the world. So, we are trying to do our, of course, traditional chai and all is happening, but we are doing more pharmaceuticals, IT, etc. services," Kapur said.
Kapur said that India was focusing on enhancing cooperation with Russia, particularly in developing its railway infrastructure due to its strong railway system.
Moscow hosted the two-day BRICS Business Forum ahead of the leaders' summit in Kazan. The October 22-24 summit will be the highlight of Russia's 2024 chairmanship of the group.