 New Delhi has also benefited from Russian oil at steep discounts after the U.S. and its allies imposed sanctions on Russian crude. In Moscow, Modi's arrival is being portrayed as the latest evidence of the West's failure to isolate Russia. Yet Modi's larger goal appears reasserting India's value to the Kremlin, economically and perhaps politically, at a time when Russia is pursuing ever-closer ties with India's main rival, China. Charles Baines, NPR News, Moscow.