India yesterday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin had agreed to further strengthen the special relationship between their countries in talks that ranged over areas including energy and defence.

New Delhi is engaged in a diplomatic balancing act as it tries to maintain strong ties with the US, Gulf Arab states, Russia, Iran and Israel, while suffering the impact of shipping and trade disruptions due to the Ukraine and Iran wars.

Modi and Putin “shared perspectives on ... the conflicts in West Asia and the Black Sea region which have impacted maritime trade and the safety and security of Indian seafarers”, a statement from India’s foreign ministry said. Modi reiterated that conflicts should be resolved by dialogue and diplomacy and that India stood ready to assist in peace efforts, it added.

“The two leaders agreed to remain engaged in an effort to strengthen further the special and privileged strategic partnership between the two countries,” the foreign ministry statement said.

India, along with China, is one of the biggest buyers of Russian oil, which is seen as helping Moscow replenish its budget. India has sought to resist the pressure to scale back the trade, saying its economy need secure, affordable and reliable energy supplies. India and Russia have said they want to raise bilateral trade to $100 billion by 2030 from nearly $70 billion in 2024-25.