Russia’s President, Vladimir Putin will pay an official visit to India from December 10 to 11 for the 15th India- Russia Annual Summit. He will be accompanied by a high level official and business delegation.
During the visit, President Putin will hold talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, both in the restricted and delegation format. The two heads of government will jointly interact with Chief Executive Officers of major companies from both the countries. The two leaders are also likely to make a joint appearance at the World Diamond Congress being held in New Delhi on December 11 as the visit will look at trade to boost the bilateral ties. President Putin will also call on the President of India, Pranab Mukherjee during his visit.
Preceded by Putin’s visit are bilateral talks on the multi-billion dollar Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA) joint project. The preliminary design agreement on FGFA had been signed in 2010 between HAL and Russian Sukhoi Design Bureau to build the jet for use by both countries. But the final R&D contract, which was to be signed by 2012, is still to be finalised. The contract would pave the way for prototype development and flight testing.
The two sides are also likely to further talks on a free trade agreement with the Customs Union of Russia, Kazakhstan and Belarus as well as joint energy exploration in Russian gas fields
The India-Russia Annual Summit process was initiated under President Putin’s leadership during his visit to India in October 2000. The last Summit was held in Moscow during the visit of former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh to Russia in October 2013.