Indian External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar has criticised the Western countries' policy towards Russia, stating that it was one of the reasons behind expanding ties between Moscow and Beijing.
"It is kind of funny... On one hand, you have sets of people whose policies bring the two countries together. On the other hand, you say beware of that," Jaishankar said during a panel discussion at the Raisina Dialogue in New Delhi on Friday.
"I think it is very much in Indian national interest and in global interest (to keep Russia engaged)," the top Indian diplomat asserted.
He remarked that a "lot of doors have been shut to Russia in the West" in view of the sanctions imposed by the Western countries against Moscow.
"Russia is turning more towards Asia, or to parts of the world which are not West. It makes sense to give Russia multiple options..If we railroad Russia into a single option, that's really bad," Jaishankar underscored.
He highlighted that it was very important for countries in Asia to "engage Russia".
"Russia is a power with an enormous tradition of statecraft. Such powers would never put themselves into a single relationship of an overwhelming nature. It would go against their policy," Jaishankar stated.
In the wake of western sanctions against Russia over the special military operation in Ukraine, Moscow has significantly expanded its economic and strategic relations with China and India, the world's fastest growing major economies and the biggest global markets.
During a call between President Vladimir Putin and President Xi Jinping this month, both the leaders noted that the bilateral trade hit a record $227 billion last year.
Meanwhile, trade between India and Russia has more than doubled to $50 billion, thanks to booming Russian oil exports to New Delhi.
Last year, Moscow emerged as the top crude supplier of India, meeting between 30 to 40 percent of India's oil requirements.