Putin to visit India in September to attend BRICS summit:2nd visit in 10 months; Modi will also visit Russia this year

Russian President Vladimir Putin will visit India in September. The Russian government said on Tuesday that Putin will participate in the BRICS Summit to be held in New Delhi on September 12 and 13. PM Modi had officially invited Putin to attend the summit during his visit to India in December 2025. This will be Putin’s second visit to India within a year. Earlier, Putin had visited India in December 2025. During that time, he participated in the 23rd India-Russia Annual Summit with PM Modi. The 2025 visit was also considered special because it was Putin’s first visit to India after the start of the Ukraine war. Before that, he had last visited New Delhi in 2021. India is chairing the BRICS Summit This year, India is chairing BRICS, a group of the world’s major emerging economies. Alongside India, the bloc includes Brazil, Russia, China, and South Africa, while newer members include Egypt, Iran, Ethiopia, United Arab Emirates, and Indonesia. During India’s presidency, several meetings, ministerial conferences, and working group discussions are being held across various cities in the country. India has focused its presidency on strengthening the voice of the “Global South”, promoting a multipolar world order, enhancing economic cooperation, ensuring energy security, expanding digital public infrastructure, improving counter-terrorism cooperation, and strengthening global supply chains. Through this agenda, India aims to project BRICS not merely as a political platform, but as a major economic grouping linked to trade, investment, technology, and development. Earlier this month, Sergey Lavrov visited India to participate in the BRICS Foreign Ministers’ meeting. Discussions at the meeting focused on tensions in West Asia, global security, reforms of multilateral institutions, terrorism, and economic cooperation. India also emphasised that the world is changing rapidly and that cooperation among Global South countries has become increasingly important in such circumstances. India’s presidency is being viewed as particularly significant at a time when the world is facing multiple crises. Amid growing US-China rivalry, the Russia-Ukraine war, conflict in West Asia, and continuing global economic uncertainty, BRICS is attempting to position itself as an alternative platform to counterbalance the influence of Western countries. PM Modi will also visit Russia this year Earlier, Sergey Lavrov, who was on a visit to India, said on May 15 that preparations were underway for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Russia. He stated that Modi had confirmed his visit to Russia. Lavrov added that strong cooperation continues between the two countries in defence, energy, trade, and several other sectors, and that Russia wants this partnership to strengthen further at a rapid pace. His remarks suggest that Modi may visit Russia later this year to participate in the annual India-Russia summit. However, the official dates and programme for the visit have not yet been formally announced. The annual India-Russia summit is usually held in October, November, or December. Over the past several years, the summit has largely taken place during the final months of the year. Therefore, it is believed that Prime Minister Modi’s visit to Russia and the summit may also be held towards the end of this year. The India-Russia annual summit has generally been held every year since it began in 2000. Since then, leaders of both countries have participated in the summit almost annually, with the event being hosted alternately in India and Russia. During the summit, Prime Minister Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin hold bilateral talks. Discussions typically focus on defence, energy, trade, nuclear cooperation, space, connectivity, and global issues. Important agreements between India-Russia in December 2025 Energy Cooperation: Russia assured that it will continuously and without interruption supply fuel for India’s growing economy. Industrial Partnership: Indian companies signed an agreement with Russia’s URALCHEM to establish a urea plant in Russia itself. Food Safety: Formal agreements were made between India’s FSSAI and Russia’s consumer protection agency to strengthen food safety regulations. Healthcare Cooperation: Several MoUs were signed to enhance cooperation in medical research and health services. Maritime Logistics: An MoU was signed to enhance India-Russia cooperation in port and shipping operations. Migration and Mobility: Both countries made agreements to facilitate the movement of people and simplify migration processes. ​