West Asia conflict, bilateral ties top agenda for Russian Deputy PM's India visit

New Delhi: Russia's First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov will undertake a two-day visit to India beginning Thursday to review bilateral ties and exchange views with his Indian interlocutors on the fallout of the West Asia conflict.

Manturov is scheduled to hold separate talks with National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, according to the external affairs ministry.

Under the bilateral framework, Doval and Manturov are expected to deliberate on India-Russia ties in critical areas of defence, energy security and trade.

The Russian First Deputy Prime Minister's visit to New Delhi comes days after India cleared procurement of a fresh batch of five S-400 missile systems from Russia.

The decision to procure the additional batch of five S-400 air defence missile systems was taken against the backdrop of the missile system proving its capability during Operation Sindoor.

The missile system played a crucial role in India's dominance over Pakistan during the May 7-10 hostilities last year.

In October 2018, India had signed a USD 5 billion deal with Russia to buy five units of S-400 air defence missile systems, notwithstanding a warning by the US that going ahead with the contract may invite US sanctions under the provisions of Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA).

Three squadrons have already been delivered.

In the talks, the two sides are also expected to exchange views on the West Asia conflict and its impact on global economy, especially on the energy sector.

It is learnt that both sides will also review the implementation of decisions taken at the summit talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin last December.

Following talks between the two leaders, India and Russia unveiled a raft of measures including a five-year roadmap to build a robust economic partnership and to increase the annual trade to USD 100 billion by 2030.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov last week lauded India's "independent foreign policy" and said that Russia looks forward to welcoming Modi for a visit this year.

In an address at an conference titled "India and Russia: Towards a new bilateral agenda," he said the "time-tested" friendship between the two countries is a model on interstate relations based on mutual trust and respect.

"New Delhi deserves the deepest respect for pursuing an independent foreign policy as part of its course toward strategic autonomy, consistently prioritising the national interest," he said.

"The time-tested Russian-Indian friendship is a model of how interstate relations based on equality, mutual trust and respect, and consideration of each other's interests can and should be built," he added.