All-party delegation's Russia visit deepened bilateral strategic meet on issues of significance: Indian Embassy

Moscow: India and Russia share a time-tested relationship based on mutual trust and cooperation, and an all-party Indian delegation's engagements with Russian parliamentarians, officials and other stakeholders further deepened the bilateral strategic convergence on issues of global and regional significance, the Indian mission here has said.

The delegation led by DMK MP Kanimozhi Karunanidhi was in Russia to sensitise the diplomatic leadership about terror emanating from Pakistan. It held wide-ranging discussions to brief the stakeholders in “tried and tested” friend Russia on Operation Sindoor.

"India and Russia share a time-tested relationship based on mutual trust and cooperation underpinned by their Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership," the Embassy of India in Moscow said in a statement on Saturday.

The "engagements of the all-party delegation with the Russian parliamentarians, officials, think tanks and media representatives on May 23-24 May further deepened the strategic convergence between the two countries on issues of global and regional significance", it said.

These engagements were in line with the delegation’s mandate to project India’s united resolve and zero-tolerance approach towards terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, it said.

On the evening of May 23, the delegation held in-depth discussions with scholars and experts from the Institute of World Economy and International Relations (IMEMO), Higher School of Economics (HSE), Russian Institute of Strategic Studies (RISS), Valdai Discussion Club and Russian International Affairs Council (RIAC), among others.

The interaction focused on the risks posed by the complicity of state actors in cross-border terrorism, especially when coupled with disinformation campaigns aimed at obscuring ground realities, the statement said.

Drawing from shared regional experiences, both sides discussed frameworks for cooperation in counter-terrorism research, strategic foresight and crisis response mechanisms, it said.

There was also mutual recognition of the need for greater academic engagement between Indian and Russian institutions, it added.

On May 24, the delegation held a media interaction with prominent Russian journalists from TASS, Kommersant, Vedomosti, RBC, Izvestia, RIA Novosti, RT and Sputnik, among others.

The Indian delegation highlighted the evolving tactics of transnational terrorist groups, including the use of humanitarian cover and emerging technologies to spread violence, according to the statement.

Further, the delegation addressed the need to combat selective silence, the politicisation of terror narratives, and the growing menace of state-sponsored propaganda. India’s demand for accountability for cross-border terrorist attacks was firmly reiterated, it said.

The delegation reinforced India’s diplomatic efforts to sensitise international partners, particularly strategic and media communities, on the need for a principled, consistent, and coordinated global response against terrorism, it added.