New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to travel to Russia on Monday, July 8, on his first bilateral visit after becoming the head of the government following a tough battle in Lok Sabha elections. Although the Ministry of External Affairs mentioned the tour as a two-day visit to Moscow, technically, PM Modi will stay for only 26 hours. Ahead of his visit, the Prime Minister said the relations between the two nations are "special" and "privileged" and added it has advanced in the past 10 years. PM Modi emphasised that he is looking forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with "his friend" Russian President Vladimir Putin
However, the statement from the Prime Minister did not specifically mention whether he would take up the issue of Indians forced to work in the Russian Army. However, foreign secretary Vinay Kwatra, during a special press briefing, mentioned that the issue of Indians in the war zone will be among the Prime Minister's top priorities.
"The Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia has advanced over the past ten years, including in the areas of energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges," PM Modi said in a statement hours before leaving for Moscow on Monday. "I look forward to reviewing all aspects of bilateral cooperation with my friend President Vladimir Putin and sharing perspectives on various regional and global issues. We seek to play a supportive role in a peaceful and stable region. The visit will also provide me with an opportunity to meet the vibrant Indian community in Russia," he added.
PM Modi's Russia visit full schedule
According to the special briefing of MEA held on July 5, Kwatra said that the Prime Minister would land in Moscow late afternoon and receive a grand ceremonial welcome at the Vanukovo airport. Later, he will travel to his hotel, with tight security in place.
Later in the evening, President Putin will host a private dinner for the Prime Minister at the Dacha (a Russian summer home)-- a special gesture that the Russian boss extended only to a few global leaders.
The next day, the Prime Minister will interact with the Indian living community which includes business and student communities at a hotel. As part of programming elements, PM Modi will also lay a wreath at the tomb of the unknown soldier in the Kremlin. And thereafter, he will visit the Rosatom Pavilion at the exhibition venue in Moscow, according to the schedule presented by Kwatra.
Subsequently, the two leaders will hold a closed-door meeting which was described as "a restricted-level talk" by the MEA.
"These engagements will be followed by a restricted-level talk between the two leaders, which will then be followed by delegation-level talks led by the Honourable Prime Minister and the Russian President. Honourable Prime Minister will depart Moscow for Vienna in the afternoon of 9th July," said Kwatra.
Key agenda of Modi's Russia visit
According to the MEA, the 22nd annual summit between India and Russia would provide an opportunity for the two leaders to review the whole range of bilateral issues, including defence, trade linkages, investment ties, energy cooperation, S&T, education, culture, and people-to-people exchanges. They would also share perspectives on regional and global developments of mutual interest. They would also assess the status of bilateral engagements in groupings such as BRICS, Shanghai Cooperation Organization, G20, East Asia Summit, and the UN.
The issue of early discharge of Indian nationals who have been misled into the service of the Russian army is also expected to figure in the discussions. Other areas of interest would also include cooperation across the range of areas that I just listed above.
India has had a Special and Privileged Partnership since 2020, which has remained resilient in the wake of multiple geopolitical challenges that the world has been facing. The annual summit between the two leaders is the highest mechanism to steer and drive the cooperation between our two countries. Our bilateral exchanges with Russia have also remained fairly frequent over the last year. The two foreign ministers have met several times last year. Most recently, they met the day before yesterday on the sidelines of the SCO summit. EAM had also visited Moscow and St. Petersburg in December last year. And the two National Security Advisers have also met a few times last year.
India-Russia trade deficit
India-Russia bilateral trade has seen a sharp increase in 2023-24. It has since touched close to $65 billion, primarily due to strong energy cooperation between India and Russia. With Indian exports of $4 billion and Indian imports being close to $60 billion, trade remains imbalanced, which is a matter of priority in our discussions with the Russian side.
India also has growing investment ties between the two countries, including in the fields of energy, banking, railways, and steel. These are the growing areas of investment partnership between both nations. Russia also remains an important partner for India's energy security and defence. In the area of nuclear energy, Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant units 1 and 2 have already become operational. And the work is progressing on units 3 and 6.
Fresh defence deal unlikely
Although there are few expectations that both leaders will discuss any fresh defence deal, it is anticipated that New Delhi would ask Moscow to fasten the delivery of existing deals. "In the field of defence also, we continue to work closely across a full range of its sub-domains. Both sides are currently working on a series of outcome documents, which would be the result of the summit. The specifics of these outcomes would be shared with our media friends as and when they are finalized," said Kwatra.
