Member of Parliament Shashi Tharoor, who is in Russia on a visit, met Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on the margins of the annual Primakov Readings — an international level forum on world affairs and the global economy.
Tharoor posted the meeting on social media site X, writing, "Good to catch up with old friend Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on the sidelines of the Primakov Readings in Moscow," along with photos from their meeting.
Addressing the gathering on Tuesday, Lavrov underlined the vigor and potential of the future of the special and privileged strategic partnership between India and Russia. He also welcomed the role played by Yevgeny Maksimovich Primakov, a renowned Russian statesman and scholar.
"Here too, the legacy of E.M. Primakov is also popular. It was he who years ago had the idea to create such a non-bureaucratic 'troika' — RIC (Russia, India and China). Since then, it has been meeting regularly over the last few years. Now we are on hiatus. First, came the pandemic, and then the buildup along the border between India and China acted as a 'brake'. Now, with reports that these buildups are slowing, we hope that the activity of RIC will be resumed," Lavrov said while addressing a diverse group of global experts, officials, and scholars.
Another video of Tharoor's encounter with Russian legislator Leonid Slutsky also went viral. They met on Tuesday in Moscow. Slutsky serves as chairman of the Duma Committee on International Affairs and is the leader of the Liberal Democratic Party of Russia.
In the video, Slutsky speaks of arrangements for the seventh edition of an international anti-terror conference, which is likely to be held next year, with representatives from India, Turkey, Iran, China, and Pakistan.
Tharoor, who is chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs and recently led a multi-party Indian delegation abroad under the Operation Sindhoor diplomatic outreach following the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack, did not shy away from raising Pakistan's well-documented history of connection to terrorism.
"Chairman, there is one country that unfortunately offers safe haven to these terrorist organizations. They have their base there and give training to terrorists in their own country. They support them, equip them, and export them to other nations. So, it is difficult for us to turn a blind eye to the fact that they do have patronage in Pakistan," Tharoor spoke bluntly.
In the course of the conversation, the two leaders also discussed urgent global events, including the Gaza crisis, the conflict in Ukraine, and increased military tensions between India and Pakistan.
Additional issues discussed included regional stability in Asia and greater inter-parliamentary cooperation in the BRICS group, according to Russian television channel RT.
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