Kudankulam, defence, energy top Manmohan-Putin talks
Moscow: India and Russia Monday marked a very special phase in their close ties as the first Russian-built reactor in Tamil Nadu's Kudankulam was connected to the electricity grid in south India and poised to
In defence, where both sides are close partners with India sourcing a major chunk of its hardware from Russia, both Putin and Manmohan Singh mentioned the completion of the refitting of the aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov, rechristened Vikramaditya, which is to be handed over to India in mid November.
Their defence cooperation has transformed from buyer-seller to co-design and co-production, especially in the Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft and the Multi Transport Aircraft.
Both sides are to collaborate in manufacture of Russian built Mi-17V-5 helicopter, which was extensively used during rescue operations in the Uttarakhand flood tragedy earlier this year, said the foreign secretary.
Manmohan Singh and Putin discussed Afghanistan, and how to "prevent the effects of terrorism from spilling over". India has made sizeable contribution to infrastructure development in violence-hit Afghanistan.
During their discussions on regional issues, Iran and Pakistan figured. Both sides discussed Syria and India commended Russia's move to defuse the crisis when the US was planning military strikes over alleged use of chemical weapons by President Bashar al Assad.