The Russian Foreign Minister spoke about Putin’s visit to India: It’s first visit amid the Russia-Ukraine war
Russian President Vladimir Putin To Visit India Soon: A new update has come regarding the proposed visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to India since last year. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Thursday he was going to prepare for a visit by President Putin to India. It is a different matter, though, that the Russian Foreign Minister did not mention any date for the visit. Earlier in November, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov had said that President Vladimir Putin could visit India next year. If this happens, Putin will visit India for the first time since 2021.
Russian Foreign Minister confirms Putin’s visit
Lavrov said this in his address during a conference organized by the Russian International Affairs Council. He said that President Putin has accepted PM Modi’s invitation to visit India. In such a situation, preparations are currently underway for President Putin’s visit to India. Along with this, the Foreign Minister also said that after PM Modi became Prime Minister again last year, his first visit was to Russia.
PM Modi visited Russia last year
Lavrov further said that now it is our turn. PM Modi visited Russia in July 2024. This was his first visit to Russia in about five years. In this visit, PM Modi jointly chaired the 22nd India-Russia Summit between the two countries with the Russian President. President Putin is scheduled to visit India this year for the same summit.
Lavrov said why this visit is important
In this conference, Lavrov shed light on the partnership between India and Russia and said that strengthening the special strategic partnership with India is one of the priorities of Russian foreign policy. Along with this, he also said that Russia appreciates and believes in India’s policy of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam. He also said that India and PM Modi have always adopted a balanced approach regarding the conflict with Ukraine and have given priority to dialogue to eradicate the conflict from its roots.
‘Emphasis always on dialogue and diplomacy’
India has always favoured talking and diplomacy for the Russia-Ukraine conflict. While the Prime Minister Modi told President Putin that this is not the time for war, he has always kept a distance from proposals on international forums that advocated strict action against Russia. Let us tell you that since the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the Russian President has visited very few countries.
In March 2023, the International Criminal Court issued a warrant against Putin in connection with a war-related case, after which his international tours were extremely limited; he did not even participate in the G20 summit held in Delhi. It is a different matter that India has not signed the ICC and hence it has no legal obligation to arrest Putin.
Why is Putin’s visit to India important?
Although there is a possibility of reaching an agreement on several agreements between Russia and India to mark the completion of 25 years of strategic partnership between the two countries. But sources say that during Putin’s visit, both countries will try to come closer in the field of labor mobility and education. This will also be discussed in the second bilateral education summit in May. Along with this, the Russian side will also move forward with the proposal to bring together the financial infrastructure and national payment system.
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