Russian President Vladimir Putin with PM Narendra Modi on Thursday

Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in India on Thursday for a two-day annual India-Russia bilateral summit. The Russian head of the state, who was accompanied by a high-level delegation, was received by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj in New Delhi. During his visit, India and Russia are likely to sign about 20 pacts in areas ranging from defence, nuclear energy, space and economy. Putin and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will hold a small meeting on Thursday and both the leaders are likely to sign important agreements including the S-400 air defence systems deal on Friday.

One of the expected outcomes which will be announced is the joint India-Russia counter-terrorism exercise, Indra-2018, set to be held from November 18 to 28. On Tuesday, Putin’s top foreign policy aide Yury Ushakov had confirmed that the Russian President will oversee the signing of the S-400 air defence systems deal. This was the first official confirmation from the Russian government at the highest level of the deal, which is worth more than $5 billion, about the signing of the agreement.

News Agencies