<h1>Russia moves to fix India trade gap, shield deals from sanctions and deepen energy, defence, nuclear cooperation</h1> Russia signalled readiness to address India's concerns over a large bilateral trade deficit and proposed creating a legal and financial architecture to shield trade from sanctions and third-country pressure. Ahead of an annual summit between the two countries' leaders, Moscow indicated crude oil deliveries to India may dip briefly due to Western sanctions but vowed to maintain volumes and expand energy cooperation, including settlement in national currencies to reduce dollar dependence. Russia also offered collaboration on small modular nuclear reactors and deeper defence co-production, while acknowledging India's demand to boost Russian imports of Indian goods. The ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict and India's role in potential mediation are expected to feature prominently in the talks.