Last Update: June 02, 2023, 00:27 AM IST
On 4 May, Jaishankar and Lavrov met on the sidelines of a conference of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the SCO and comprehensively reviewed India-Russia relations. (Image: External Affairs Minister Jaishankar’s Twitter)
Jaishankar, who is here to attend a summit of the five-nation grouping BRICS, met Lavrov on the sidelines of the summit.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday met his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov and discussed issues of bilateral and global interests – the second meeting between the two leaders within a month.
Jaishankar, who was here to attend a summit of the five-nation group BRICS (Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa), met Lavrov on the sidelines of the BRICS foreign ministers’ meeting.
“Nice to meet Russian FM Sergey Lavrov in Cape Town this morning on the sidelines of BRICS FMM. Our discussions covered bilateral matters, BRICS, G20 and SCO.
Nice to meet Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Cape Town this morning on the sidelines of the BRICS FMM. Our discussions covered bilateral matters, BRICS, G20 and SCO. pic.twitter.com/sgClHv3iSn
Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) June 1, 2023
India will host the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) and G-20 summits in July and September respectively.
Citing a statement issued by the Russian Foreign Ministry, state-owned TASS news agency said Lavrov and Jaishankar gave high marks to the dynamics of cooperation in key areas of the special and privileged partnership of the two countries.
“The Ministers highly appraised the dynamics of cooperation on important directions of the Special and Privileged Partnership of our countries. Special attention was paid to the expansion of dialogue in SCO, BRICS and G20.
Relevant issues on the bilateral agenda as well as international and regional issues were discussed during the meeting, the statement said.
It added, “The mutual intention was reaffirmed to adhere to a policy of building a fair multipolar system of interfaith relations, including by disengaging and stopping the use of neo-colonial practices.”
On 4 May, Jaishankar and Lavrov met on the sidelines of a conference of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the SCO and comprehensively reviewed the India-Russia ‘Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership’ in the backdrop of Moscow’s increasingly cold relations with Russia . West on the Ukraine crisis.
A Russian readout of the Jaishankar-Lavrov talks at the time said the two sides agreed to continue working towards building a “fair multipolar system of interstate relations”.
India has been pressing Russia to immediately address the trade imbalance that has been in favor of Moscow.
India’s trade deficit with Russia had widened in the last few months after it bought large quantities of subsidized crude oil from that country in the backdrop of the Ukraine crisis.
India’s economic ties with Russia have grown massively in the last one year, mainly due to the purchase of subsidized oil from Russia.
India has not yet condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine and is pushing for a resolution of the conflict through dialogue and diplomacy.
Russia has also been strongly supporting India’s SCO presidency.
On Wednesday, Jaishankar said it is still early days for a resolution to the conflict between Ukraine and Russia, as the focus is currently on issues related to the grain corridor, nuclear issues and exchange of prisoners of war .
BRICS (Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa) brings together the world’s five largest developing countries, representing 41 percent of the global population, 24 percent of global GDP and 16 percent of global trade. ,
(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – PTI,
