Against the backdrop of the ongoing U.S.-Israel conflict with Iran, Indian and Russian diplomats held a round of Foreign Office Consultations here on Monday (March 30, 2026). The meeting came days after Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow was working on the annual India-Russia summit to be held later this year in Russia.
The Russian delegation was headed by Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Rudenko, while the Indian side was led by Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri. “Both sides reviewed the full spectrum of Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership and shared perspectives on bilateral, regional and global issues of mutual interest,” Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said. A Russian Embassy readout said the two sides “discussed a wide range of issues on the bilateral agenda, including the schedule of upcoming contacts”, indicating that schedules of high-level meetings were also discussed.
Later in the evening, Mr. Rudenko met External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and discussed “regional and global developments”.
The real story of the India-Russia summit
India is the current chair of BRICS, which includes Russia and India among its founding members. The grouping has not come out with a statement even as the U.S.-Israel attacks on Iran have prompted the Islamic Republic to hit the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, increasing complications for the BRICS as Saudi Arabia, Iran and the UAE are members of the bloc.
