Billboards featuring Narendra Modi and Vladimir Putin have appeared in the Indian capital as New Delhi hosts its annual geopolitical gathering

RT has launched an advertising campaign in India featuring Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi as global change makers. Prominent billboards in upmarket areas of New Delhi show the two leaders together, with the slogan "India-Russia: Driving Global Change" in Hindi, Russian, and English.

India is currently hosting the Raisina Dialogue, a major annual multilateral conference. The images aim to highlight the enduring partnership between India and Russia, which according to Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar has "withstood the test of time."

The Russian Embassy in India shared images of the campaign while extending its best wishes on the occasion of the Hindu festival Holi last week. It described the images as signifying "decades of trusted friendship" between the two nations.

The campaign has also attracted the attention of local media. "The boldness of Russia's push has left experts intrigued about its intentions and the evolving dynamics of India-Russia relations," a News18 report noted on Monday. It also pointed out that Putin had recently thanked several world leaders, including Modi, US President Donald Trump, and Chinese President Xi Jinping, for their "noble mission" to stop "hostilities and the loss of human lives" in the Ukraine conflict. The Russian president is set to visit India later this year for a bilateral summit with Modi.

India has walked a diplomatic tightrope in the Ukraine conflict, maintaining close contacts with the US and Europe while expanding its strategic partnership with Russia, which has emerged as its largest oil supplier. Despite pressure from the West, New Delhi insists that its relations with Moscow correspond to its strategic security and economic interests.

In January, the outgoing administration of US President Joe Biden imposed sanctions which disrupted Russian oil supplies to India, which relies on sea routes to transport crude. Oil imports from Russia subsequently fell by nearly 25% in February, although they have since recovered to near previous levels, Reuters reported last week, citing trade sources and shipping data.

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Russia also continues to be India's primary defense supplier. Earlier this month, New Delhi signed a $248 million contract with Rosoboronexport, the Russian state agency for defense exports, to procure engines for the Indian Army's T-72 tanks. Russia has also offered New Delhi to partner on developing an export version of the Su-57 fifth-generation fighter jet, suggesting that its production could be localized in India.