World Trade Centre Mumbai and the All India Association of Industries (AIAI) hosted an interactive roundtable with a senior Russian business delegation. The meeting focused on trade, investment, and technology cooperation. Over 150 participants joined structured B2B meetings.
Focus on Strengthening Bilateral Trade
Addressing the session, Ms. Malahova Irina, Lead Specialist, South Export Support Centre, Russia said,
“India and Russia have time-tested economic and trade partnership. Our main objective today here is to strengthen this partnership further and facilitate Russian businesses to enter the Indian markets. As an export promotion chamber, we are here to connect businesses thereby creating a fruitful bilateral relation between Crimea and India”.
She further stated,
“Russia remains a premier source of quality products like wine, distilleries, spirits and mineral water. With our ties hitherto being limited to energy, defence and capital goods, we wish to see expansion of our trade baskets to further strengthen our bilateral ties”.
Strategic Outlook on India–Russia Relations
Dr. Vijay Kalantri, Chairman, World Trade Centre, Mumbai and President, All India Association of Industries, spoke on the long-standing partnership between the two countries. He said,
“India and Russia share a strategic bilateral relationship which has remained unhindered over the years. This partnership was recently reinforced with the state visit of President Putin in the last week. In recent years, our bilateral trade has increased exponentially. With the reliance on rupee-ruble trade mechanism, investments of Russian companies in Indian capital markets, sharing of critical nuclear and defence technology and Joint Ventures, I am confident that our bilateral trade will reach 100 billion dollars by 2027.
However, this expansion of trade also resulted in widening the trade deficit which India has with Russia. With a partnership based on mutual trust and ambition of growth, and ties which remain unaffected by geopolitical actions like tariffs, I am sure in the coming years we will bridge this trade imbalance.”
India and Maharashtra as Investment Hubs
Welcoming Russian investments, Dr. Kalantri further said,
“India with its 1.4 billion population offers a huge consumer base for global partners to invest and scale in India. There exist tremendous opportunities for businesses to engage in investments and joint ventures. The state of Maharashtra has a favourable policy for investors and local manufacturing. The expanding trade is evident from newer sectors like spirits, tourism and coolants coming to India for trade”.
Converting Intent into Outcomes
While proposing the vote of thanks, Ms. Priya Pansare, Director, Trade and Investment Promotion, World Trade Centre Mumbai said,
“India and Russia share a partnership that is historic, strategic, and forward-looking. Built on deep trust and mutual respect, this relationship has evolved into a strong economic alliance, with bilateral trade exceeding USD 68 billion annually. Today’s interaction is therefore more than a meeting, it is a platform to connect, collaborate and convert strong bilateral intent into concrete outcomes”.
Interest in Joint Ventures and Market Expansion
During the interaction, Russian delegates shared regional investment opportunities. They highlighted business-friendly policies. The delegation expressed interest in joint ventures and technology transfer. Discussions also covered logistics, financial transactions, and market access.
