Record! 28 MoUs inked, defence cooperation for 10 years

New Delhi, Dec 7: In a huge development, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss defence and trade relations and signed a record 28 MoUs across a wide range of sectors including trade, energy, culture, intellectual property accountancy and education. Though President Putin's visit was short, it was highly productive and highly substantive. Besides 28 MoUs, New Delhi and Moscow also signed a programme of cooperation in the field of defence for the next 10 years from 2021 to 2031.

 

Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla said, "there were excellent discussions between the two leaders. This is President Putin second visit out of Russia since Covid-19 pandemic began. The only visit he has undertaken was the brief visit to Geneva for the Russia-US summit. The fact that the Russian president has decided to visit India for the annual summit exceptionally is an indication of the importance he attaches to the bilateral relationship and also his personal rapport," he added.

 

Noting that "record number 28 MoUs were concluded during the visit," Shringla said the "agreements were government-to-government and business-to-business, including those involving public sector units. The diversity of agreements and MoUs signed today shows the multifaceted nature of our bilateral partnership."

 

 

India has also begun to receive S-400 missiles from Russia this month, Shringla said, adding that supplies would continue. Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit Russia in 2022, according to a joint statement issued after they met on Monday.

 

On the other hand, the leaders discussed regional and global developments, including the post-pandemic global economic recovery, and the situation in Afghanistan. They agreed that both countries share common perspectives and concerns on Afghanistan and appreciated the bilateral roadmap charted out at the NSA level for consultation and cooperation on Afghanistan.

 

 

Both of them emphasized the need for greater economic cooperation and in this context, emphasized on new drivers of growth for long-term predictable and sustained economic cooperation. They appreciated the success story of mutual investments and looked forward to greater investments in each others’ countries. The role of connectivity through the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC) and the proposed Chennai - Vladivostok Eastern Maritime Corridor was figured in the discussions.

 

The two leaders looked forward to greater inter-regional cooperation between various regions of Russia, in particular with the Russian Far East, with the States of India. They appreciated the ongoing bilateral cooperation in the fight against the Covid pandemic, including humanitarian assistance extended by both countries to each other in critical times of need.