International - India & World   

Natwar Singh in Moscow

Vladimir Radyuhin

MOSCOW: External Affairs Minister K. Natwar Singh has expressed confidence that his four-day visit to Russia will strengthen strategic partnership between India and Russia.

Mr. Singh arrived here on Tuesday for the 11th session of the Indo-Russian Inter-Governmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific-Technical and Cultural Cooperation. He is leading a 28-member delegation, which includes high-ranking officials from the Ministries of External Affairs, Information Technology, Petroleum, Steel and Coal and other agencies and banks.

"I am looking forward to my meetings with President [Vladimir] Putin and Foreign Minister [Sergei] Lavrov and to discussing bilateral and multilateral issues of mutual interest," he said in a statement on arrival.

Mr. Singh will finalise the agenda for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Russia later this year.

Describing Indo-Russian relations as "time-tested friendship, which has become a strategic partnership," Mr. Singh said he was confident his visit "will lead to a further strengthening of age-old partnership."

He will represent India at a meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation at the level of heads of government. India, together with Iran and Pakistan, joined the SCO as observer in July.

"India feels that there can be meaningful cooperation among the SCO countries in trade, investment, development of financial institutions, banking linkages, energy and transportation links," he said.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokesman said Moscow "highly values the intensive and trust-based political dialogue with India, which reflects the mutual willingness of Moscow and New Delhi to strengthen and expand strategic partnership."

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Stories in this Section

Gurdwara provides shelter to quake-hit
Global aid falls short of Pakistan's relief needs
Iraqis approve new constitution
Galloway challenges U.S. Senators
Protest over sacking of rebel professor
Nuclear talks before mid-November
Two U.S. Marines killed
Singapore sees India, China as pace-setters for economic growth of other Asian countries
Pakistan for "just resolution" of Kashmir
Natwar Singh in Moscow
India aims to become a hub for stem-cell research

Copyright © 2005, The Hindu. Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly prohibited without the written consent of The Hindu