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India and Russia are actively working "to promote mutual trade" using their national currencies, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said, highlighting efforts to address trade imbalances and strengthen economic ties.
Speaking at the special briefing, Misri said, "Both countries are continuing to work together to promote mutual trade in our national currencies. You would be aware that Special Rupee Vostro Accounts (SRVAs) have been opened in significant numbers. They right now form a very effective mechanism in terms of lubricating, so to speak, the trade flows between the two countries." He added that one of the major objectives of the visit was to reach an understanding on increasing Indian exports to Russia. "We also hope, as I said, one of the major objectives during this visit was to reach an understanding on how to increase Indian exports to Russia so that we can better address the trade imbalance between the two countries," Misri explained. The Foreign Secretary emphasised that combining these two strategies -- managing trade imbalances and expanding trade settlement in national currencies -- would create a stronger framework for bilateral commerce. "I think doing these two things together, handling the trade balance together with expanding opportunities for settlement in national currencies, will allow us to move towards this particular objective," he said. Misri said that the India-Russia relationship is "important not just bilaterally, but in terms of its regional as well as global significance.": "It remains an important anchor for constructive engagement in a very complex geopolitical environment," he added. He noted that the current visit concentrated on strengthening economic and industrial collaboration. "This particular visit, as I said, its focus was on economic issues, on further building the industrial partnership, the investment partnership between the two countries," Misri explained. The Foreign Secretary pointed to growing challenges in global trade and investment, underscoring the need for India and Russia to enhance cooperation. "In current times, if you look around the globe, supply chains are under stress, trade relationships are under stress, investment is becoming more and more unpredictable, and therefore, in this environment, for our two countries to focus on these issues is a message in itself," he said. (ANI)
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