Prime Minister Narendra Modi discussed the issue of early discharge of the remaining Indian nationals in the Russian Army during his bilateral meeting on October 22 with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the 16th BRICS Summit in Kazan.
Addressing a media briefing, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said the two leaders also shared perspectives on the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. Prime Minister reiterated that dialogue and diplomacy were the way forward to achieve a resolution of the conflict. He briefed President Putin about his engagements with the Ukrainian leadership and noted that India stood ready to contribute in bringing peace to the region.
“An important issue that came up was the issue of early discharge of the remaining Indian nationals in the Russian Army. This figured from both sides in the discussion and with the support of the Russian side, a number of Indian nationals have, in recent months, been able to return to India. We understand that currently the embassy is pursuing around 20 cases with the Russian side and we very much hope that all of these individuals can be released at an early date and be repatriated to India very soon,” he said.
Misri said the two sides also expressed satisfaction at the ongoing defence cooperation and agreed to hold the next meeting of the India-Russia Intergovernmental Cooperation Group on Defence Cooperation in Moscow at an early date.
On energy cooperation in which there is engagement between India and Russia on building nuclear power plants in India, it was agreed that the Department of Atomic Energy and the Russian agency Rosatom would continue to remain in touch to adhere to the mutually agreed schedule for the installation of the remaining units, that is units 3 to 6 of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project.
Economic cooperation figured quite prominently in the talks and the two sides discussed the possibility of further cooperation in the financial sector, Misri said. Sustaining supply chains for the steady and regular sourcing of fertilizers and coal from Russia was also discussed and President Putin promised assistance in this regard as well, he added.
The Foreign Secretary said India will host the 25th session of the India-Russia Intergovernmental Commission on trade, technical, economic and cultural cooperation in New Delhi on November 12, 2024, for which the Russian delegation will be led by Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov.
“As I had pointed out just a couple of days ago as well, India is at this time working with the Russian side to open a new consulate right here in Kazan in the not too distant future. Another new consulate that was announced sometime back will be opened in Yekaterinburg,” he said.
PM Modi said in a post on X that he had an excellent meeting with President Putin. “The bond between India and Russia is deep-rooted. Our talks focussed on how to add even more vigour to our bilateral partnership across diverse sectors,” he said.
Prime Minister thanked President Putin for his invitation to attend the 16th BRICS Summit. He appreciated the Russian Chairship of BRICS and its efforts to strengthen multilateralism, advance sustainable development, and push for global governance reform. The two leaders also reviewed bilateral cooperation in a range of fields, including political, economic, defence, energy, and people-to-people ties.
An official release said the two leaders agreed to remain engaged to further strengthen the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between the two countries, which continues to register significant growth and has shown resilience in the backdrop of geopolitical uncertainties.
Misri said the two leaders discussed the progress made in bilateral relations since the 22nd annual Summit between them, which was held in July this year in Moscow.
“The two leaders had an extensive agenda to go over the whole range of bilateral issues including trade, economy, energy, defence, connectivity, education and people-to-people ties were discussed between the two of them. Regional and global issues of mutual concern also came up for discussion. The two leaders also exchanged views on several matters concerning BRICS and President Putin expressed his appreciation for India’s constructive attitude and contributions in concluding the documents related to the Kazan BRICS Summit.”
The Foreign Secretary said India has old historical links with Kazan, a city which lay on an ancient trade route. On his arrival at the hotel, PM Modi was greeted by members of the Indian community in Kazan.
“We also had members of the local ISKCON branch singing Sanskrit chants to welcome him, and a group of Russian artists performed Kathak and Garba dances on the occasion. Thereafter, the Prime Minister witnessed a photo exhibition on Mahatma Gandhi that highlighted the Mahatma’s engagement with Leo Tolstoy and this is particularly significant as it was in Kazan that Leo Tolstoy studied for several years,” he said.
(With inputs from ANI)
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