Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Visit Russia, First in Five Years

Russia is set to host Prime Minister Narendra Modi on July 8 for the first time in five years. It is anticipated that he will meet Putin for a private dinner during the period of his visit, which is expected to last till Tuesday. The itinerary also includes a brief visit to Rosatom Pavilion at the exhibition venue in Moscow.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will participate in the 22^nd annual bilateral summit, which will take place after three years. Both leaders will be meeting for the first time after 2022. The leaders will have talks over a range of topics including notable international as well as domestic issues. The pressing matter of Indians who were misled to take part in the war will be discussed as per the foreign ministry.

This visit comes at a time of significance as the Russian side is seemingly deepening its engagements with China, with which India struggles to strike a balance with territorial disputes. This high-level visit points to the closeness of the two nations despite the aforementioned differences.

India- Russia Bilateral Summit

The annual India-Russia summit began when Russian President Vladimir Putin visited India in 2000, and then-Indian PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee established this tradition. Since then, the summit has alternated between India and Russia each year.

Both countries share a long history of friendship, especially since the Cold War era. Russia reserves the place of being India’s biggest supplier of weapons and oil. The bilateral relation remains resilient, as noticed by experts on the matter.

India and Russia has been having an enduring and robust relations anchored by the defence and energy cooperation since decades. The year 2000 marked a milestone with the establishment of the annual India-Russia summit, while in 2010, the relationship was elevated to a ‘Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership’.

In view of the summit, Russia has ratified a military logistics agreement with India aimed at bolstering coordination between their armed forces. Additionally, India has notably increased its imports of Russian crude oil in recent years, despite pressures from Western countries in the energy sector.

India and Russia; Concerns at present

Currently, trade between India and Russia amounts to $65 billion, driven largely by robust energy cooperation, though Delhi is mindful of the trade deficit.

In civil nuclear energy, the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant has successfully commissioned units 1 and 2, with ongoing developments for units 3 and 4.

India also remains carefully observing the growing closeness between Russia and China. Kremlin had referred to their current state of relation as the ‘best in history’.

PM’s Itinerary for the visit

Prime Minister Modi is scheduled to leave for Moscow at 10:55 am on Monday, and he is expected to land at Vnukovo-II International Airport at 5:20 pm on the same day.

Upon arrival, President Vladimir Putin will host a private dinner for PM Modi. The dinner will be at the estate in the Moscow suburb of Novo-Ogaryovo. The following day, Modi is expected to interact with the Indian Diaspora there, which is a regular occurance during his visits abroad. On June 9, the Prime Minister will lay a wreath at the Kremlin’s Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. Afterwards, he will visit the Rosatom pavilion at the exhibition venue in Moscow.

“Following these events, there will be private discussions between the two leaders, followed by broader talks involving delegations led by Prime Minister Modi and President Putin,” stated Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra during a media briefing earlier this week. He also mentioned that the visit would further discuss defense ties between both nations.

After the visit to Russia, on July 9^th, Modi will fly to visit Austria. This will mark the first visit by an Indian Prime Minister to the country in 41 years. Indira Gandhi was the last Prime Minister of India to visit Austria in 1983.