After 2+2 with US, focus shifts to Modi-Putin meet

Just days after hosting the first India-US “2+2 dialogue”, New Delhi has now shifted focus on setting the stage for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin early next month.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj is set to visit Moscow on Thursday and Friday. Her visit is aimed at striking a balance between India’s relations with the United States and that with Russia.

Sushma and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman hosted US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Secretary of Defence James N Mattis for the first India-US 2+2 dialogue.

During her visit to Moscow, Sushma and Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov will co-chair the meeting of the 23rd India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Technical and Economic Cooperation (IRIGC-TEC).

The IRIGC-TEC is a panel which annually meets and reviews ongoing activities of bilateral cooperation in the fields of bilateral trade and investment, science and technology, culture and other issues of mutual interest.

The commission, after taking stock of bilateral cooperation in various fields, will provide policy recommendations and directions in the concerned fields, the Ministry of External Affairs stated. The last meeting was held in New Delhi in December 2017.

Commerce Minister Suresh Prabhu is visiting Vladivostok in Russia from Monday for the Eastern Economic Forum. He is leading a high-level delegation from New Delhi.