Modi in Russia highlights: PM departs for Austria after fruitful two-day visit

Prime Minister Narendra Modi departed for Austria after a fruitful two-day visit to Russia during which the two countries discussed ways to further shore up bilateral cooperation in sectors such as energy, trade, manufacturing and fertilisers.

Prime Minister Modi on Monday began a high-profile visit to Russia to hold the 22nd India-Russia annual summit with President Vladimir Putin, in his first trip since the start of Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.

PTI

Russia has promised to discharge Indians who were falsely induced to join its army, an issue Prime Minister Narendra Modi raised at talks with President Vladimir Putin, an Indian official said.

India has been seeking the release of its nationals whose families say they were lured to Russia by the promise of “support jobs” in the army, and were later forced into active combat in Ukraine.

“The Prime Minister strongly raised the issue of early discharge of Indian nationals who have been misled into the service of the Russian army,” Indian Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra told reporters in Moscow as Mr. Modi wrapped up a two-day visit.

The Russian side had promised the early discharge of all such people, he said.

Mr. Kwatra said the situation affected an estimated 35-50 Indians, of whom 10 had already been brought home. He said the two countries would now work to expedite the remaining cases.

PTI

India and Russia target $100 billion in bilateral trade by 2030, agree on a joint statement, vision statement for economic and trade cooperation, agreement on economic cooperation in Russia’s Far East. The countries also signed MoUs on climate change, polar research, legal arbitration. Investment promotion, pharmaceuticals, etc.

- Suhasini Haidar

Russian President Vladimir Putin thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for trying to help find a peaceful solution to the Ukraine crisis.

“I am grateful to you for the attention you pay to the most pressing issues, particularly trying to find ways to resolve the Ukraine crisis, primarily through peaceful means,” Mr. Putin was quoted as saying by the official TASS news agency.

Mr. Putin made the statement during his talks with Mr. Modi at the Kremlin, it said.

PTI

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was officially conferred the ‘Order of St Andrew the Apostle’ award by Russian President Vladimir Putin for exceptional services in promoting bilateral ties between the two countries.

Established in 1698 by Tsar Peter the Great in honour of Saint Andrew, the first apostle of Jesus and patron saint of Russia, the Order of St Andrew the Apostle is the highest state decoration of Russia.

Russia is exploring a long-term oil deal with India, Interfax news agency quoted Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak as saying.

Speaking on the sidelines of a meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Moscow, Mr. Novak said Russia was also looking at different options for gas supplies to India.

Reuters

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he held productive discussions with President Putin at Kremlin today. “Talks covered ways to diversify India-Russia cooperation in trade, commerce, security, agriculture, technology & innovation,” he said.

“We attach great importance to boosting connectivity and people-to-people exchanges,” Mr. Modi said after talks with President Putin. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said energy is an important pillar of cooperation between India and Russia and New Delhi is eager to further cement ties in this sector with Moscow as he visited the Rosatom Pavilion along with President Vladimir Putin.

Mr. Modi witnessed a photo exhibition dedicated to India-Russia cooperation in the field of civil nuclear energy at the Rosatom Pavilion at VDNKh, inaugurated in November 2023. It is one of the largest exhibitions in the history of scientific and technological developments.

Russian President Vladimir Putin told visiting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi that their countries enjoyed a special strategic partnership and thanked him for his efforts to find a peaceful solution to the war in Ukraine.

- Reuters

“I believe there is no peace on the battlefield and solutions to the war must be found through dialogue. We spoke frankly and sensed a new thinking from our talks,” PM Modi tells Vladimir Putin, adding that “India is in favour of Peace, and I want to tell the international community that after my talks with my friend Putin I am filled with hope in this.”

- Suhasini Haidar

“I am happy that we both could put across or individual views on Ukraine in yesterday’s meeting,” PM Modi tells Russia’s Putin. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi brings up the bombing of children’s hospital in Ukraine, that was carried out a day before by Russia. He says that the death of innocent children in war, conflict or a terrorist attack “is very painful”,.

PM Modi, Vladimir Putin are holding the 22nd annual India-Russia summit.

India Russia cooperation has averted food fuel fertilizer shortages for Indians in past few years (post-conflict), and have “indirectly” stabilized the global economy through the purchase of oil from Russia.

During the meeting, PM Modi appreciates Russia’s contribution in Indian manufacturing sector, which he says has helped generate employment for Indian youth. 

“This a meeting that is being keenly followed across the world,” Mr. Modi said. 

The Prime Minister made the announcement of the opening of new consulates at Kazan and Yekaterinburg while addressing the Indian diaspora during his two-day visit to Russia.

Yekaterinburg is Russia’s fourth largest city which has emerged as an important economic centre. The city had hosted four FIFA World Cup matches in 2018 when the sporting event was held in Russia.

Located on the confluence of the Volga and Kazanka rivers, Kazan is a cultural and educational hub and an emerging economic centre in Russia.

Russia will also host the BRICS Summit in October in Kazan.

- PTI

The ‘Tomb of the Unknown Soldier’ is a war memorial located at the Kremlin Wall, in Moscow.

It features a dark red porphyry monument adorned with a bronze sculpture of a laurel branch and a soldier’s helmet placed upon a banner.

It is dedicated to the Soviet soldiers who lost their lives during World War II.

As the optics of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Moscow and his embrace on Monday of Russian President Putin raised eyebrows in Washington and Kyiv, India rejected concerns about its ties with Russia.

“India has always called for respecting the UN charter, including territorial integrity and sovereignty,” the official sources said. PM Modi is believed to have stressed with President Putin that there is “no solution on the battlefield” to the conflict and that “dialogue and diplomacy” are the only way forward, government officials have said.

Click here to read Suhasini Haidar’s full report from Moscow

Prime Minister Narendra Modi described Russia as India’s “all-weather friend” and hailed President Vladimir Putin’s leadership in strengthening the bilateral relationship over the past two decades.

Mr. Modi said he had a special appreciation for “his friend” President Putin for steering India-Russia friendship to greater heights over the last two decades.

The Prime Minister said for a long time the world had seen an “influence-oriented global order”.

“But, what the world needs right now is confluence not influence and no one can deliver this message better than India which has a strong tradition of worshipping confluences,” Mr. Modi said.

- PTI

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that he has vowed to work three times more and at thrice the speed to achieve the targets for India adding that today’s India achieves whatever goal it sets its mind to.

“Today, India shines as a country that is giving the world the most reliable model of digital transactions,” the Prime Minister told the Indian community in Russia at an event in Moscow.

He stated that the world is surprised to see the pace of development that India has achieved in the past 10 years.

-ANI

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced that India will set up two new consulates in the Russia cities of Kazan and Yekaterinberg.

-Suhasini Haidar

At a community event meeting the Indian diaspora, PM Modi said that Indians in Russia were contributing to the Russian society.

“Indians in Russia are strengthening bilateral ties, contributing to Russian society,” he said.

“As soon as they hear the word ‘Russia’, every Indian thinks that it is a trustable friend; a friend in joy and sorrow...”

-Suhasini Haidar

Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky wrote on X: “It is a huge disappointment and a devastating blow to peace efforts to see the leader of the world’s largest democracy hug the world’s most bloody criminal in Moscow on such a day.”

“We expect the release [of Indians in Russian-Ukraine warfront] to take place within weeks from various places where they are serving or deployed,” sources told The Hindu on the condition of anonymity.

It is unclear whether there will be a public announcement about the order and whether it will find mention in the joint statement, that comes after weeks of diplomatic discussions, and the issue being raised by the Indian Embassy in Moscow as well as by External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov during a ​meeting on the sidelines of the SCO Summit​ in Astana last week.

-Suhasini Haidar

India has rejected U.S. State department’s concerns over PM Modi’s meeting with Vladimir Putin today.

“India has always called for respecting the UN Charter, including territorial integrity and sovereignty. There is no solution on the battlefield. Dialogue and diplomacy is the way forward.”, say government sources.

-Suhasini Haidar

The United States has raised concerns with India about its relationship with Russia amid Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine, a U.S. State Department spokesperson told reporters on Monday in response to questions about a meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

India has faced pressure from the West to distance itself from Moscow after Russia invaded Ukraine. New Delhi has thus far resisted that pressure, citing its longstanding ties with Russia and its economic needs.

Read the story here.

President Vladimir Putin has accepted a direct request from PM Modi to discharge Indians misled into military recruitment serving at the warfront with Ukraine, according to sources.

Since 2023, around 100 Indians were recruited by the Russian Army at its Moscow recruitment centre, according to an official who works for the Russian Ministry of Defence.

The Indian-origin official told The Hindu on condition of anonymity that all recruits are apprised about the risks related to the job before they signed the contract to join as “army security helpers.”

• Indian Community event, cultural performances by Russian students
• Pay respects at Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, Red Square
• Visit to “ATOM”, exhibition of Rosatom nuclear power developments and technology with President Putin
• Formal Summit at Kremlin- review of bilateral issues, Ukraine war, global issues
• Delegation-level talks and announcement of outcomes/agreements
• Leave for Vienna, for bilateral talks, first visit by an Indian PM in 41 years

Boarding his special plane from Delhi to Moscow’s Vnukovo-II VIP airport, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that he would discuss the full range of bilateral issues with his “friend Russian President Vladimir Putin” during his two-day 26-hour visit to Russia for the 22nd Annual Summit, including in the areas of “energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges,” also indicating the war in Ukraine is on the agenda for talks.

What’s on the agenda? Click here to read five areas to watch.

According to sources, India and Russia will sign “several” documents at the end of the talks on Tuesday, including a comprehensive joint statement, a vision statement, the future course on energy and trade, cooperation on investments in Russia’s Far East and a number of MoUs. The two sides are also discussing India’s desire to open new consulates in Russia, the sources confirmed.