India and Russia reaffirmed their commitment to their special and privileged strategic partnership during External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar’s meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov at the UN. The two sides also discussed bilateral and BRICS cooperation.
Published Date – 26 September 2026, 08:29 AM
United Nations: India and Russia reaffirmed their commitment to “the special and privileged” strategic partnership during a meeting between External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov here, according to Moscow’s Foreign Ministry.
“The sides reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening the special and privileged Russia-India Strategic Partnership and close coordination at the UN, G20 and BRICS,” the ministry said in an X post after the Friday meeting.
EAM Jaishankar wrote on X that they “exchanged views on a number of ongoing issues. Also took stock of our bilateral and BRICS cooperation”.
Lavrov had visited India earlier this month for the BRICS summit along with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin.
US President Donald Trump has invited Putin to the G20 Summit of industrialised and emerging economies in December, which Prime Minister Narendra Modi is also expected to attend.
At his meeting with Putin at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation Summit in Kyrgyzstan late last month, PM Modi firmly asked him to end the Ukraine War in the name of humanity.
EAM Jaishankar had met Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha on Monday.
He wrote on X tersely after the meeting that they “focused on developments over the past few weeks”, while Sybiha said more explicitly that they discussed “peace efforts”.
Neither EAM Jaishankar nor the Russian ministry mentioned the Ukraine War as a topic of discussion in the Lavrov meeting.
But EAM Jaishankar cryptically mentioned their discussion covered a “number of ongoing issues”.
As founding members, India and Russia have often coordinated positions on issues ranging from reforming global financial institutions to technology transfer and the energy transition.
The meeting also highlights India’s active diplomatic calendar at UNGA, where EAM Jaishankar has been holding bilateral talks with counterparts from multiple countries.
His engagements are expected to focus on strengthening partnerships, addressing global challenges such as climate change and terrorism, and reinforcing India’s role as a voice for the Global South.
–IANS