New Delhi, December 5 — Prime Minister Narendra Modi warmly received Russian President Vladimir Putin at Hyderabad House in New Delhi on Friday ahead of the 23rd India-Russia Annual Summit, highlighting the long-standing ties between the two countries. Putin is on a two-day state visit to India, his first in four years, at the invitation of the prime minister.
Earlier in the day, following a ceremonial welcome at Rashtrapati Bhavan, President Putin visited Rajghat to pay tribute to Mahatma Gandhi. He laid a wreath, placed floral tributes at the memorial and signed the visitors’ book. Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh accompanied him to the memorial.
The arrival ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan included a tri-services guard of honour and the playing of the Indian and Russian national anthems. President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Modi received President Putin and introduced each other’s delegations. Among those who attended the ceremony were External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, Delhi Lieutenant Governor V.K. Saxena and Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan. Russian attendees included Defence Minister Andrey Belousov and Kremlin aide Dmitry Peskov.
This visit marks the first in-person meeting between Modi and Putin on Indian soil since December 2021. Putin arrived in New Delhi on Thursday, and Prime Minister Modi met him at Palam Airport, breaking with protocol to greet him with a hug. The two leaders later shared a car ride to the prime minister’s Lok Kalyan Marg residence, where Modi presented Putin with a copy of the Bhagavad Gita.
In a post on X, PM Modi described the personal bond between the two leaders as a “time-tested” friendship and said he was pleased to welcome President Putin back to India after four years. Bilateral talks between the two leaders were scheduled in the national capital as part of the summit agenda.
The visit is expected to reinforce diplomatic, strategic and economic cooperation between India and Russia as both sides engage in discussions during the two-day state visit. (Source: ANI)
