India-Russia Trade Expansion: Seeking Approvals for Marine and Pharmaceutical Exports to Reach $100 Billion Goal by 2030

New Delhi:

India has approached Russia requesting facilitation for expedited listing of domestic establishments and registration of marine and pharmaceutical products, aiming to enhance bilateral trade relations.

During his visit to Moscow, Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal emphasized the substantial potential for expanding trade partnerships and suggested confidence-building measures to improve market access between the two nations, according to an official statement released on Thursday.

The key issues raised included accelerated listing of Indian establishments and implementing a systems-based approach with FSVPS for agricultural products, particularly marine items, along with establishing a time-bound pathway for pharmaceuticals covering registration, regulatory reliance, and predictable timelines.

FSVPS represents Russia's Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Supervision.

The commerce ministry announced that a forward-looking protocol for trade and economic cooperation spanning multiple sectors was finalized and signed during the meeting between Agrawal and Vladimir Ilyichev, Deputy Minister of Economic Development of Russia.

Agrawal is currently in Moscow participating in the 26th Meeting of the India-Russia Working Group on Trade and Economic Cooperation.

The current bilateral trade volume stands at USD 25 billion, with both countries committed to increasing it to USD 100 billion by 2030.

The working group identified potential cooperation opportunities across various sectors including engineering goods, chemicals and plastics, electronics, pharmaceuticals, agriculture, leather, and textiles.

They also highlighted Indian product strengths in engineering goods, smartphones, motor vehicles, gems and jewelry, organic chemicals, textiles, and leather that could support Russia's trade de-risking and diversification strategy.

In the services sector, the Indian delegation encouraged greater procurement of Indian IT-BPM, healthcare, education, and creative services by Russian entities, while advocating for predictable mobility for Indian professionals to address labor shortages in the Russian market.

India's Global Capability Centre (GCC) ecosystem, comprising over 1,700 centers employing nearly 1.9 million professionals, was presented as a ready platform for Russian companies to strengthen business continuity, cybersecurity, design and analytics, and shared services, enhancing resilience in both goods and services supply chains.

The Indian delegation acknowledged Russia's interest in establishing a bilateral investment treaty, according to the ministry.

Both nations agreed to explore payment solutions that would meet business needs, particularly for medium, small, and micro enterprises.