Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Russia on Monday for the first time in five years at a time when Moscow is deepening its embrace of New Delhi¡¯s rival, China.
Modi is set to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin during the visit, which will stretch into Tuesday. India¡¯s Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra told reporters in New Delhi that given the lack of recent summits, several issues on the bilateral agenda ¡°have piled up, which need to be addressed.¡±
Senior Indian diplomats, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that while major announcements are unlikely, Modi¡¯s visit is intended to send a signal that the two sides remain close. Russia¡¯s ties to India stretch back to the Cold War, and the country is India¡¯s biggest supplier of weapons and oil. That relationship has remained ¡°resilient,¡± Kwatra said.
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