New Delhi. 05 December 2021. Countdown to the visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin has begun. It will take place on 6th December, tomorrow. He will be here for the 21st India-Russia Annual Summit.
Actually there will be a series of meetings on that day resulting into a very intensive engagement during the day and culminating with the summit. The day will begin with Defence Minister of India and his Russian counterpart, Sergey Shoygu, co-chairing what is known as the Intergovernmental Commission on Military Technical Cooperation, in the morning.
The External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar will have a bilateral meeting with his counterpart Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov. These meetings will be followed by the first meeting, the inaugural meeting of the newly instituted 2 + 2 dialogue mechanism at the level of the foreign and defence ministers. Both ministers are expected to discuss bilateral, regional and international political and defence issues within this format.
In the afternoon, the 21st India-Russia Annual Summit will be held and India looks forward to welcoming President Putin to New Delhi for the summit. The leaders will review the state and prospects of bilateral relations and discuss ways to further strengthen the strategic partnership between the two countries. And the summit will of course, offer an opportunity to exchange views on regional, multilateral and international issues of mutual interest.
A joint statement is proposed to be issued at the end of the summit, which will encapsulate the discussions, understandings and agreements signed during and also in the run up to the summit. This is an annual event held alternately in India and Russia.
