India to Give Green Light to Buffalo Meat Exports to Russia: Ministry

NEW DELHI, December 4 (Sputnik) – India will allow for buffalo meat exports to Russia; the deal is expected to be finalized during the Russian president’s visit to India, the Indian Ministry of Commerce and Industry told Sputnik Thursday.

“India will allow export of buffalo meat to Russia, the process is in the final stage and it will be finalized during Russian President Putin's visit to India,” Santosh Sarangi, the secretary of the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority said.

Earlier in the day, Russia's Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance Surveillance, Rosselkhoznadzor, announced that the conditions for the delivery of buffalo meat from Russia to India have been agreed by the two sides. A veterinary inspector will soon be sent to India to supervise the process, the watchdog added.

In September, a preliminary agreement that may pave the way for the deliveries of dairy and meat products from India to Russia was reached. The move comes as Russia is searching for suppliers to substitute products that were earlier prohibited from the Russian market due to an import ban imposed by Moscow in response to Western sanctions.

In late October, Rosselkhoznadzor stated that a reorientation toward other markets because of Western sanctions would result in the redistribution of foreign producer's shares in the Russian market.

Vladimir Putin is due to arrive in India for an official visit on December 11.