Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Russia from Spain on Wednesday, this is his third stop of his six-day, four-nation tour of Europe. Modi will be holding the 18th India-Russia annual bilateral summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, on Thursday. He will attend, for the first time, the St Petersburg International Economic Forum, a business event, on Friday and than leave for France.
In an article published in Russian paper Rossiyskaya Gazetta, Modi wrote that, “India-Russia relations … have withstood the test of time, and grown from strength to strength.” In response to this Putin replied “Our peoples have always had mutual sympathy and respect for each other’s spiritual values and culture.” Though both the leaders are trying to portray the image of warmth and bonding between the two nations, everyone is aware that Russia and India no longer share the bonding like it had before 1991. The cordial relations between the two countries has drifted from a psychological and ideological zone into a purely commercial and utilitarian one.
Though Russia at present is not a hostile enemy of India, but it is not even a warm friend and both the leaders are aware of this delicate situation.
Modi in his article said that, India and Russia are “natural partners” in fighting terrorism and have been together in times – good and bad. The resilience of relationship between India and Russia is based on the fact that it rests on the principles of equality, trust and mutual benefit, he said. He further appreciated the help of Soviet Union to India to build its industrial base. He added that, in the last seventy years, India has developed a large and diversified industrial and technological base. It is among the fastest growing large economies of the world. The potential for India’s accelerated growth has never been greater, nor the optimism higher.
Modi further said that, Russian equipment and technology is the mainstay of India’s defence forces and the cooperation in the military technical field is a pillar of great strength in India-Russia relations. The symbols of the contemporary partnership today include Indian investments in Sakhalin 1, and now the Vankor and Taas-Yuryakh oil fields, the nuclear power plant at Kudankulam and the Brahmos Joint Venture Project,” he said. He also added that India has been an important contributor to the pharmaceutical industry of Russia.
Modi than underlined upon the new areas of cooperation both countries were focusing on. He said that both countries are exploring new areas of cooperation like railways, innovation, IT, diamond trade, and infrastructure. There are efforts towards greater joint production and technology transfer from Russia to India.
Modi welcomed Russian companies to join Indian government’s programmes such as Make in India, Start Up India, Skill India and Digital India.
Concluding the article, Modi said that, he was hard struck with the achievements of Russia, its sense of history and the pride of its people, back when he has visited Russia in 2001 with PM Atal Bihari Vajpayee. He further added that Russian writers like Dostoevsky, Pushkin and Chekov have always influenced Indian thought, drama, yoga, Indian films, songs and dances.
“I pay homage to all those, known and unknown, who have toiled and contributed to the development of the unique relationship between our two nations. We are committed to building on this legacy and bequeathing to our youth a strong and vibrant partnership that will contribute to changing the world for the better,” Modi said.