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Russian Presidential Aide Yury Ushakov on Wednesday briefed the media ahead of the Russia-India Summit in New Delhi, confirming that Russian President Vladimir Putin will pay a state visit to India on December 4-5 at the invitation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Ushakov said the bilateral political dialogue between India and Russia remains "regular and confidential," noting that the two leaders met earlier this year on the sidelines of the SCO Heads of State Council Meeting in Tianjin, China, on September 1, and have held five telephone conversations in 2025. He added that, in Moscow, Putin received National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and met External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar twice, underscoring the frequency of high-level engagements. According to Ushakov, cooperation between Russia and India is "actively expanding," rooted in a "strong and long-term friendship and mutual respect." He pointed out that December 21 marks the 15th anniversary of the joint statement that elevated Russian-Indian relations to a "special and privileged strategic partnership," with ties deepening across politics and security, economy and finance, transport and logistics, science and technology, and education and culture. Ushakov stressed that Putin's visit is of "high importance" and will allow both nations to discuss the "entire extensive agenda" of bilateral relations. In addition to talks with Prime Minister Modi, the programme includes Putin's participation in the Russia-India Business Forum and a launch ceremony of the RT TV channel in India, reflecting the growing scope of cooperation. He also said Putin is scheduled to hold a separate meeting with President Droupadi Murmu. According to Ushakov, a joint statement is expected following the visit, along with "a number of bilateral documents" covering various sectors, including the programme for the development of strategic areas of Russian-Indian economic cooperation until 2030. He highlighted that trade and economic cooperation will be discussed in detail, noting that bilateral trade turnover rose by 12 per cent in 2024 to USD 63.6 billion. In August, Moscow hosted a regular meeting of the intergovernmental commission co-chaired by First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, further advancing economic dialogue. Ushakov said both countries are pursuing "many large-scale promising projects" in industrial cooperation, innovative technologies, transport, peaceful space exploration, mining, healthcare and labour migration programmes. He also mentioned tourist exchanges, noting that over 80,000 Russian citizens travelled to India in 2024, while Indians made more than 40,000 trips to Russia, demonstrating growing people-to-people contact. He added that the leaders are expected to exchange views on "topical international issues," including cooperation at the UN, SCO, G20 and BRICS, with attention to India's chairmanship of BRICS in 2026. (ANI)
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