Russia on Tuesday said it is ready to address India’s concerns over the widening trade deficit and proposed building a framework to shield bilateral commerce from pressure by third countries. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov, speaking ahead of President Vladimir Putin’s visit to New Delhi, said Moscow is also working to stabilise crude supplies after a brief dip linked to Western sanctions, according to PTI.Peskov told reporters during a video-streamed news conference that Friday’s summit between Putin and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will focus on strengthening trade, energy cooperation, small modular nuclear reactors and additional defence projects. Putin is scheduled to arrive on Thursday for the annual meeting.Russia signals efforts to ease trade deficitPeskov acknowledged India’s concern over the large trade gap and said Russia is keen to increase its imports from India. “There is a real imbalance in our trade. We know our Indian friends are concerned about that. We are jointly looking at the possibilities of increasing imports from India. We want to buy more from India,” he said.India’s purchases of Russian goods and services amount to around $ 65 billion, while Russia’s imports from India are around $ 5 billion.He also said Moscow is taking steps to ensure crude supplies remain stable despite the impact of Western restrictions. India’s purchase of Russian oil, he said, may dip only for a “very brief period.”Push for alternative payment systems and sanctions-proof tradePeskov urged the creation of an “architecture” to insulate India-Russia trade from geopolitical pressure. “We should create an architecture of our relationship that must be free of any influence coming from any third country,” he said. He stressed that bilateral trade must be protected from external pressure and that Russia rejects the use of the dollar-denominated global payment system as a “political tool.”He indicated that settlement through national currencies may feature in the Modi-Putin talks. “We understand the pressure on India,” he said, referring to the US.The visit comes at a tense moment in India-US ties, with Washington imposing a 50% tariff on Indian goods and an additional 25% levy linked to New Delhi’s procurement of Russian crude.Defence, nuclear cooperation and technology sharingPeskov highlighted joint production of the BrahMos missile system as a model for high-technology collaboration and said discussions may cover potential supplies of Su-57 fighter jets and additional S-400 air defence systems. He also said cooperation in small and medium nuclear reactors is expected to be part of the talks. Russia has experience producing these systems and is prepared to share the technology with India.On China, Peskov said Russia’s “limitless” partnership with Beijing does not diminish its willingness to deepen ties with India. “We are ready to go as far as India is ready,” he said, adding that Moscow respects India-China relations and hopes both sides resolve their issues to preserve global stability.Ukraine conflict, counter-terrorism and Afghanistan tiesPeskov welcomed recent US mediation efforts in the Ukraine conflict, calling them “very effective” and expressing hope for progress. He said the Russia-Ukraine war will be an important part of the Modi-Putin agenda. “Russia is open for peaceful negotiation; we have to reach our goals. We appreciate the position of India,” he said.He added that Russia is ready to work with India “to combat terrorism,” and said Moscow is strengthening its engagement with Afghanistan. “We’ll continue to develop our relationship with Afghanistan,” he noted.On overall ties, Peskov said Russia is proud to stand “shoulder-to-shoulder” with India during its period of historic growth.

The Scottish Government will introduce a new Bill to allow councils to institute a flat rate visitor levy.

Local authorities currently have the power to implement a so-called tourist tax on visitors to the area, but can only do so as a percentage of the cost of stays in hotels and other forms of accommodation.

But public finance minister Ivan McKee announced on Tuesday a Bill would be lodged in the new year to allow for a flat fee to be introduced, in the hopes it would pass before the end of the parliamentary term in March.

In a statement, the minister said: “The visitor levy empowers councils by giving them a new way to raise money for investment in tourist services and facilities.

“Our aim has been to give councils the flexibility to design a levy that works for their areas, while ensuring businesses can easily understand what it means for them.

“The Act passed last year was an example of partnership working between the Scottish Government, local government and tourism businesses.

“Through regular discussions with our partners, it became clear that further flexibility would be welcomed.

“That is why we have decided to legislate next year, to ensure local visitor levies work effectively for everyone.”

Scottish Tory economy spokesman Murdo Fraser said that while it was a “relief” the Government had “finally listened” to calls for the flat rate, the levy would still hurt local economies.

“Whilst that is an improvement, this legislation is still going to impose enormous costs on, and damage to, a sector of the economy which is already struggling with too high a cost base,” he said.

“The introduction of the SNP’s visitor levy has been handled in the most cack-handed fashion, with no real assessment of its impact, no clarity about how it will be collected, and a series of farcical U-turns about what powers councils would have.

“This announcement finally confirms the flexibility to set a flat rate on the visitor levy, but it won’t alter the extra costs and red tape being imposed on businesses and travellers – including Scots moving around the country for work or family reasons – or provide any assurance that these funds will benefit local communities.”

Marc Crothall, the chief executive of the Scottish Tourism Alliance, said the move showed the Government’s willingness to “act on feedback from business” as he pushed for councils to pause their plans for a tourist tax.

“It will overall be easier and less costly for accommodation providers and local authorities to administer, and importantly more transparent for our visitors,” Mr Crothall said.

“We now look forward to working constructively in partnership with the Scottish Government to deliver meaningful reform of the visitor levy charging model, which we have championed from the very start.

“In the meantime, we urge all local authorities to consider pausing any plans for a visitor levy scheme as this plays out in the Scottish Parliament over the next few months. Change is coming just down the line.”

UKHospitality Scotland executive director Leon Thompson said the current legislation is “unworkable” and welcomed the Scottish Government’s “pragmatic” approach.