Putin’s visit to India will provide new impetus to bilateral ties: Russian Ambassador

Russian President Vladimir Putin

INTERNATIONAL DESK: Emphasising that Russian President Vladimir Putin’s upcoming visit to Delhi would result in pragmatic economic outcomes, Russian envoy to India Nikolai Kudashev said that the visit will provide impetus to the bilateral relationship of Moscow and New Delhi.

While speaking to ANI on Saturday, the ambassador underlined that the 21st Annual India-Russia Summit, which will be held on December 6, will be of major political significance as Moscow-New Delhi ties are not ordinary.

This (India-Russia) is a relationship of a specially privileged and strategic partnership that envisages a unique level of confidence and mutual understanding and the summit would give practical, pragmatic and economic outcomes,” he said.

Thus sometimes the leaders would touch upon on very sensitive issues exclusively meant for such kind of relationship. Afghanistan is our common concern,” the ambassador said. I think the leaders (President Putin-PM Modi) would revive their commitment to peaceful Afghanistan,” he added highlighting the fact Afghanistan is of high priority after the Taliban takeover.

“The 21st Annual India-Russia Summit will not be an ordinary summit, it will be a historical summit. The summit will give the new impetus to the bilateral ties,” he said.

Underscoring the fact that “for now, it is clear that this will not be an ordinary event, this would be an outstanding event.”

Kudashev’s remark comes ahead of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s India visit on December 6. This will be the first face-to-face meeting between Putin and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, after the meeting on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in November 2019.

Earlier, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had informed that Monday’s engagements will begin with the meeting of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, and Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu, co-chairs of the intergovernmental commission on military-technical cooperation,

The leaders will review the state and prospects of bilateral relations and discuss ways to further strengthen the strategic partnership between the two countries. Putin and PM Modi will have an opportunity to exchange views on regional multilateral and international issues of mutual interest, MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi had said. (ANI)