Aday ahead of the 18th BRICS Summit scheduled for two days from September 12-13, a bilateral Summit is scheduled to be held in New Delhi between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin, who is scheduled to visit India later this week to attend the BRICS Summit.
Speaking to media in Moscow, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov who made the announcement said that the two leaders will discuss bilateral ties and ongoing global issues, along with the Russian President informing PM Modi about the current situation in the Ukraine conflict.
Speaking from Moscow during a virtual briefing hosted by Sputnik India, Peskov highlighted the close ties shared between both the countries and their leaders, calling engagements between President Putin and PM Modi as “pragmatic”. He further said that both the leaders are expected to discuss various global issues and bilateral ties in an “open and constructive” manner. This would mark their second face-to-face engagement in less than two weeks.
Scheduled a day before the BRICS Summit, the face-to-face meeting – their second in under two weeks – will focus on trade, defence partnerships and resolving persistent payment mechanisms between the two nations
Meanwhile, it is important to take note of the reaction from the Russian side on the comment by Prime Minister Modi to the Russian President Putin at their previous meeting on the sidelines of the SCO Summit in Bishkek, stating that it is time to move “from endless wars to end of war”.
Putin did not publicly give a direct response to that specific appeal. In the portion of the meeting that was made public, Putin instead spoke positively about India – Russia relations, saying that the relationship was strengthening on the basis of their “special and privileged partnership” and thanking PM Modi for his personal attention to bilateral ties.
After the Modi-Putin meeting which had lasted for about 30 minutes, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri told media that PM Modi in his discussions had conveyed that India was prepared to do whatever was feasible and necessary to bring the Ukraine War to an end. But there has been no official Indian disclosure of President Putin indicating that he agreed to end the war or giving a specific commitment to PM Modi.
The leaders will assess global economic strain, particularly the impact of energy supply shocks in the Persian Gulf, alongside joint transport projects and expanding Indian enterprise investments in Russia
But, one positive aspect to be noted from Peskov’s statement is conveying that Russia was “looking forward to the coming visit of our President, in a couple of days, to New Delhi. He will take part in the BRICS Summit, in all the formats under the auspices of the BRICS Summit, and at the same time, there will be a very significant, for both countries, part of bilateral contacts with Prime Minister Modi. You know that our two leaders, Indian and Russian leaders, are in a very close personal contact. They are very pragmatic in their relationship, and they are as sincere as to be able to discuss in a very open and constructive way, the most sensitive issues of the global agenda and our bilateral relations. Of course, it opens additional horizons for our cooperation.”
Peskov said that Russia appreciates interest of Indian companies in broadening their investments in the Russian economy in various sectors. He said that PM Modi and President Putin will discuss international issues and the situation of international projects in transportation during their meeting in New Delhi. He also highlighted the negative impact of the situation in West Asia on the global economy.
“We are looking forward to the President and Prime Minister having another bilateral meeting during the visit. It is scheduled for Friday (September 11). Like always, they will touch on the bilateral agenda, trade and economic cooperation is a very wide scope. You know that lots of issues cannot be discussed publicly having some unfriendly countries that are trying to put obstacles on the way of further development of our cooperation. So, it is being discussed discreetly but in a very constructive manner. I have no doubt that they will touch upon the main projects. So, Indian companies are interested in Russian market. They are interested in broadening their investments in Russian economy in various projects, in various fields. We appreciate that and welcome that,” Peskov emphasised.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov underscored the strong personal chemistry and “pragmatic” ties between the two leaders, emphasising their ability to address sensitive geopolitical topics in a sincere, constructive and discreet manner
“Our countries are also determined to broaden the presence of Indian companies. So, lots of issues will be discussed. It will be another opportunity for President Putin to inform his Indian friend on the current situation on different fronts, on the war with Ukraine and it will be great opportunity for exchange and opinions on international issues. Well, of course, global economy, it is being heavily influenced and negatively influenced by the situation in the Persian Gulf. So, do not forget that at the very beginning of this, we lost one fifth of oil supply, global oil supply, and we lost 30 per cent of global supply of natural gas. So, the negative consequences of all that are inevitable unfortunately, and our two countries, they’re also subject to those consequences. So, all this will be on the agenda … and the situation on some international projects in the field of transportation, will also be discussed during the meeting,” he added.
Last month, PM Modi and President Putin held a meeting on the sidelines of the 26th Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Kyrgyzstan’s Bishkek. Immediately after their bilateral discussions, the two leaders travelled in the same car to the opening ceremony of the World Nomad Games in Bishkek. PM Modi and President Putin had showcased the same bonhomie during the SCO Summit in China’s Tianjin in September last year when they travelled in the same car to the venue of their bilateral meeting.
The upcoming Modi-Putin bilateral meeting comes amid record levels of Russian energy supplies to India, discussions on expanding defence cooperation and efforts to address long-standing payment issues in bilateral trade.
– The writer is a senior journalist and media consultant. The views expressed are of the writer and do not necessarily reflect the views of Raksha Anirveda.
