Russia reaffirmed on Wednesday that Prime Minister Narendra Modi would not be participating in the Moscow celebrations of the 80th anniversary of Victory Day on May 9 as a guest for the Soviet victory over the Great Patriotic War.
Kremlin press secretary Dmitry Peskov stated, "The leader of India won't come… India will be represented, not at the level of the leaders."
Though PM Modi will not be attending, Chinese President Xi Jinping will be visiting Moscow for the occasion, with Peskov making it clear that Russia is preparing for an independent visit by Xi, which is of vital significance.
Earlier, India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) had claimed that PM Modi had received an invitation to participate in the Victory Day festivities, with a later date for the announcement of India's involvement. However, as per Russian media reports, India is most likely to be represented at the event by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. As per Russian state-run news agency Tass, Singh's Moscow visit for witnessing the parade is quite possible, and even Indian Armed Forces' ceremonial detachment's participation in the Red Square parade is also being negotiated.
The Victory Day celebration will be a grand affair in Moscow, celebrating Russia's victory in the Great Patriotic War, and Russian President Vladimir Putin will preside over the celebrations.
Further, Kremlin adviser Yury Ushakov has also confirmed that Russian President Putin will be visiting India in early 2025 at the invitation of PM Modi. The visit is a continuation of having annual meetings between the two leaders. President Putin had visited India last in December 2021 during the 21st India-Russia Annual Summit in New Delhi.
PM Modi made two significant trips to Russia during the past year, attending the 22nd Russia-India Summit in July and then following this up by joining the BRICS Summit, hosted in Kazan, in October.
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