On Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin once again hailed India's rising heft in the world and its economy under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
During a meeting with National Security Advisor Ajit Doval in Saint Petersburg, Putin said, "Our special privileged strategic partnership is gathering steam, getting stronger, which for us has become only a source of joy. We are also glad about India's success in building up, strengthening its statehood, and developing the economy, which is happening under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi."
Recalling PM Modi's visit to Moscow in July, Putin termed the visit "very successful" and said, "further work has been proceeding very meaningfully and at exactly the pace as has been agreed upon by the leaders of our countries.".
NSa Doval is in Saint Petersburg to attend a meeting of the senior security representatives of the BRICS member countries. Russia, chair of the BRICs grouping this year, would be hosting the annual BRICS Summit between October 22-24, and has invited around 36 foreign leaders to Kazan.
Putin underscored that issues of security are "always a priority for us, continue to be now". And we are grateful for your personal presence in St. Petersburg. We were able to hold the last meeting in Moscow. We appreciate your support of this dialogue, from the Indian side, too. We expect Mr Modi's visit to Kazan. I would like to propose holding a bilateral meeting in Kazan on October 22 for summing up the results of our work together on fulfilling the accords reached during his visit to Moscow, and for outlining prospects for the near future." He concluded with "best regards and wishes" to PM Modi.
NSA Doval said, "I am grateful for the opportunity to meet again with Putin. As the Prime Minister told you during the telephone conversation, he is ready to tell you about his visit to Ukraine and his meeting with Zelensky. He wanted me to come in person and tell you about the negotiations that took place. It was a closed format, only two leaders were present, and I was with the Prime Minister, I witnessed this conversation.
Earlier this year, Putin had honored PM Modi with the Order of St. Andrew the Apostle the First-Called that is Russia's highest civilian award. During the award ceremony, Putin had remarked, "Dear Mr. Prime Minister, dear friend, awarding you with the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called reflects the sincere gratitude of the Russian side for the significant contribution you make to strengthening friendship and mutual understanding between our states and people."
Addressing the visiting NSAs of BRICS countries, Putin underlined that it was in St. Petersburg, during a meeting of the leaders of India, Russia, and China, that the cornerstone for BRICS was laid by a decision to regularly hold high-level meetings and to develop cooperation in other directions.
