India and Russia have a long history of cooperation in various sectors such as trade, defence, energy, and space exploration.

India is eagerly seeking and working towards boosting trade ties with Russia, said Rajesh Kumar Singh, Secretary of the Department of Industrial Development at the Indian Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

While addressing the gathering at a Russian-Indian investment forum, Singh highlighted that India considers Russia as a key partner in achieving its economic growth targets, and both countries are committed to enhancing bilateral trade and investment opportunities.

"According to our data, foreign direct investment from Russia is around $1.26 billion in sectors like aerospace and defence, chemicals, oil and gas and railways," he said at the inauguration of the first India-Russia forum.

India aims to leverage its strengths in sectors such as pharmaceuticals, information technology, and agricultural products to deepen trade relations with Russia, he added.

He called upon Russian investors to visit India and urged them to consider investment opportunities that the country has to offer.

"Our trade has been growing over the last three years, mainly due to a significant increase in exports from Russia to India, especially oil exports. But we need to diversify our trade and we hope that mutual investment will help to further strengthen our relations," he said.

TASS