Bishkek: Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday said that Russia-India relations continue to strengthen based on the principles of a privileged strategic partnership and facilitated by the “personal attention” of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“I would also like to note with satisfaction that Russian-Indian relations continue to strengthen based on the principles of a privileged strategic partnership. Certainly, Mr. Prime Minister, this is facilitated by your personal attention to the development of Russian-Indian relations and the very warm personal and friendly relations that have developed between us, not only on a business level but also on a personal level, for which I am very grateful,” President Putin stated during a bilateral meeting with PM Modi on the sidelines of the 26th Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Bishkek.
“I am very pleased to meet again. This time, our meeting is taking place on the eve of the SCO Summit – an organisation that is committed to and working to deepen the relationship and contacts between countries of the Global South and East, promoting the socio-economic and cultural development of the region, and fostering a just and multipolar world,” he added.
Putin recalled the recent visit of External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar to Moscow and said that he ‘fully agrees’ with everything stated during the visit.
He mentioned that in 2027 India and Russia will celebrate the 80th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations and that Russia is also seriously preparing for the upcoming BRICS Summit in New Delhi in September.
“Trade and economic cooperation is generally showing positive trends: last year there was a slight decline, but in the first six months of this year, trade turnover has already increased by 2.6 per cent. A week ago, a meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission was held in Moscow, which also demonstrated good results,” stated Putin.
He noted that India is among the leaders in the number of students studying in Russia and that over the past 10 years, this figure has grown sevenfold. He called it ‘a remarkable achievement’ and said that now the number stands at almost 40,000.
(IANS)
