Vladimir Putin has accepted an invitation to visit India later this year, the Kremlin confirmed on Monday, signalling a continued effort to deepen bilateral ties between Moscow and New Delhi despite Russia’s growing international isolation. The visit will take place as part of the annual India–Russia summit format, which has not been held since 2021. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters that the date of the visit had not yet been fixed, but that the invitation from Prime Minister Narendra Modi had been received and accepted. The two leaders spoke by phone last week, discussing economic cooperation and regional security issues, including the situation in Ukraine and Afghanistan. India has not condemned Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and has maintained a position of strategic neutrality, continuing to purchase discounted Russian crude and expanding defence cooperation. Russia has become India’s largest oil supplier, displacing traditional partners in the Gulf. The Indi...