Russia’s total trade reached about US$745 billion during 2025, also showcasing a significant, albeit shifting, trade surplus of about US$120 billion. In this section we cover all news concerning Russian trade developments, with Russian exporters increasingly reaching out into new markets on a global basis as it pivots away from the West. This is the definitive source on Russian trade. Get the latest data, analysis, and news on Russia’s import/export activities, trade agreements, and increasing commercial partnerships with the Global South.
Russian President Putin has given the Penary Speech at the 2026 Russia-Africa Summit, at which 46 African government and business delegations are attending. Putin called for more commerce and investment in Africa, noting that trade with Russia had risen by 50% over the past three years. We examine the key points in his comments.
The director of the Russian Foreign Ministry’s Department of Partnership with Africa, Tatyana Dovgalenko, has been meeting with the Economic Ministers of the Sahel countries – Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger. She said that the common tasks for the countries at present are stimulating investment growth and launching infrastructure initiatives in line with the needs of the Alliance of Sahel States countries in the energy, agriculture, logistics and extractive industries.
The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Council of Heads of Government have been meeting in Dushanbe to discuss a 2026-2030 trade cooperation roadmap, plans for a digital freight platform and industrial investment-project database, and renewed efforts to establish an SCO Development Bank. Together, these initiatives aim to build on existing trade flows and expand cross-border infrastructure, investment and industrial cooperation. We identify what decisions were made and the implications. This article is of primary interest to anyone involved in Eurasian development and geopolitics.
Russian President Putin has said that Russia and the United States are preparing to work together in future LNG projects to supply global markets. US President Trump has apparently endorsed this position by stating that the United States will work with Russia once the Ukraine conflict ends.
Meanwhile, Russia’s Novatek is reportedly in discussions to help develop the Polar LNG in Alaska as it has technologies that the United States does not, suggesting that cooperation and joint investment is already being planned.
Russian President Putin has stated that Russia and Qatar can coordinate their respective LNG production and supplies to meet global demand. The two countries are the world’s second and third largest exporters. This should be good news for Europe – however Qatar cannot export due to problems in the Strait of Hormuz while the EU has stated it will cease buying Russian LNG from January. EU reserves are now at their lowest point while LNG prices have tripled this year. Europe now buys most of its LNG from the United States, providing an economic reason to prolong the war with Iran and keep Europe buying US supplies.
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Rosatom’s CEO, Alexei Likhachev, has announced that the company is to build eight nuclear power plants in Iran. The country needs to rapidly change its energy mix, with just 6% of its electricity being generated from low-carbon sources in 2025, well below the global average of 41%. Electricity consumption is expected to increase from the current 340 TWh to over 400 TWh per capita by 2040.
A Chinese business and investment mission has travelled to Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands in the Russian Far East, with investment projects involving a significant Sakhalin port development, seaweed harvesting, seafood and cosmetic mud exports, in addition to significant tourism developments. We examine what is happening as the region integrates further into the Asian economy despite Japanese political complaints.
Shipping freight transit along the Northern Sea Route is expected to have doubled by the end of this year, according to Vladimir Panov, the head of the Arctic Directorate and director of NSR and Arctic development at Rosatom. The overall 2026 cargo traffic along the route is expected to exceed a record 40 million tonnes.
The Russian and Moroccan Foreign Ministers have held a phone discussion ahead of a crucial United Nations Security Council resolution concerning the future of the Western Sahara. We examine the key issues at stake in a potential regional adjustment that could see Morocco gain full control of an area comprising 272,000 square kilometres with a population of 600,000. We also discuss the latest bilateral trade data.
The Russian State Duma Chairman Vyacheslav Volodin has met with the speaker of the Lok Sabha (Indian Parliament) Om Birla, in New Delhi. The two discussed bilateral parliamentary and legal links as well as bilateral trade, with Volodin saying that Russia-India trade had risen 24.3% in the first seven months of 2026.
The 2026 Russia Energy Week has just concluded in Moscow, with about 6,600 participants and executives from 85 countries attending. The event combines energy trade discussions with industrial modernisation, nuclear technology exports, engineering cooperation and investment opportunities across Asian and other international markets. We examine what happened and the deals made.
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