New Delhi: Russian President Vladimir Putin is all set to arrive in India today for the 21st annual India-Russia summit with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Putin decided to go ahead with the visit despite the emergence of a new COVID-19 strain Omicron which has affected the schedule of several bilateral and international summits. This is going to be the first in-person meeting between Prime Minister Modi and President Putin after their meeting on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Brasilia in November 2019.
Before the annual summit, India and Russia will also hold the first 2+2 dialogue to be held at the level of the foreign and defense ministers. The dialogue is expected to focus on “political and defense issues of mutual interest”.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will hold discussions with the Russian counterparts Sergey Lavrov and Sergey Shoigu.
Earlier Ministry of External Affairs said “The agenda for the dialogue will cover political and defense issues of mutual interest. The establishment of this new mechanism of two plus two dialogue is expected to further strengthen the strategic partnership between the two countries.”
India and Russia are expected to sign several bilateral agreements in various areas following the talks between Mr. Putin and PM Modi.
The annual summit is a time for both leaders to recalibrate the long-standing relationship.
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