"I Know He Is Willing To do His Utmost...": Putin Invites PM Modi To Russia
India’s Foreign Minister, S Jaishankar met with Russian President Vladimir Putin at Kremlin on Wednesday and held discussions on range of issues including Russia’s war in Ukraine. During the talk, Mr. Putin invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit Russia next year. He said Kremlin will be “glad to see our friend, Mr Modi in Russia”. Mr Jaishankar, who is on a five-days official visit to the country, also met with his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov earlier on Wednesday.
Honoured to call on President Vladimir Putin this evening. Conveyed the warm greetings of PM @narendramodi and handed over a personal message.
Apprised President Putin of my discussions with Ministers Manturov and Lavrov. Appreciated his guidance on the further developments of… pic.twitter.com/iuC944fYHq
— Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) December 27, 2023
The Russian President said he is willing to share information with India on how the crisis in Ukraine can be solved peacefully. Mr. Putin said he knows Mr Modi is willing to do his outmost to resolve the Ukrainian crisis peacefully. “Many times I advised him (PM Modi) on how things are going there in (Ukraine) and I know he is willing to do his utmost so that the issue is resolved by peaceful means. So we will delve into that deeper now and we will give additional information to you”.
After the talk with the Russian President, Mr Jaishankar met with Sergei Lavrov during which the former said he is confident that Mr Modi and Mr Putin would meet for annual summit next year. Summit between the two leaders is said to be the highest institutional dialogue mechanism in the strategic partnership between the two sides. The last summit between Russia and India took place in 2021. So far, 21 annual summits happened between the two countries. Mr Putin also said that the trade turnover is growing between Russia and India “for the second time in a row at the same time and at a steady pace. The growth rate this year is even higher than in the last year”.
The ties between India and Russia stood strong even after Russia’s war on Ukraine started. India never condemned Russia like several other countries, and maintained that the crisis must be resolved through diplomacy and dialogue. Moreover, India’s import of Russian crude oil has gone up significantly despite the increasing disquiet over it in several western countries.
With inputs from agencies.
