Rajnath Singh, Sergey Shoigu ink India-Russia defence pacts ahead of Modi-Putin meeting
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will welcome Russian President Vladimir Putin in the national capital today for the 21st India-Russia Annual Summit. This will be the first in-person meeting between the two leaders since their interaction on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in November 2019. India and Russia are expected to sign several bilateral agreements in various areas following the PM’s talks with his Russian counterpart.
According to reports, both the 2+2 talks as well as the summit will focus on the turmoil in Afghanistan, China, the rising threat of terrorism and more. Ahead of the meetings, Putin had said that he intends to discuss new “large-scale” initiatives on further developing “specially privileged” Russian-Indian relations with Modi. Last week, the Kremlin had said that the talks would be dominated by defence and energy issues.
Defence agreements
Two agreements, including the Kalashnikov deal, have already been signed, following a meeting between Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and his Russian counterpart, General Sergey Shoigu. India and Russia also inked a contract for procurement of 6,01,427 7.63x39mm assault rifles AK-203 through Indo-Russia Rifles Pvt Ltd, under the military-technical cooperation arrangement for 2021-31.
The India-Russia joint venture will see AK-203 assault rifles being produced within the country. With the transfer of technology taking place within seven years of the contract being signed, the first 70,000 rifles being acquired by the Indian Army (out of 7.5 lakh rifles) would include Russian-made components.
Meetings with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar
The two countries are also holding the first 2+2 dialogue (at the foreign and defence minister level) before the event. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday morning held discussions with their Russian counterparts. As per an earlier update by MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi, the talks were to cover “political and defence issues of mutual interest”.
“The partnership between India and Russia is special and unique,” said External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar during his opening remarks. The lawmaker met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, noting that this was also an opportunity to “discuss our bilateral ties and global situation”. The annual India-Russia summit is incidentally taking place after nearly two years thanks to the ongoing COVID-19
Following their interaction in the Sushma Swaraj Bhawan, Singh had also tweeted a photo with Russian Defence Minister General Sergey Shoigu. “Defence cooperation is one of the most important pillars of our partnership. I hope the India-Russia partnership will bring peace to the entire region and provide stability to the region,” the Defence Minister said.
India-Russia 2+2 interministerial dialogue
Speaking at the 2+2 dialogue, Jaishankar said that the meeting would address the “emergence of multipolarity and rebalancing”. He also touched upon challenges such as terrorism and violent extremism. “The situation in Afghanistan has wider repercussions including for Central Asia. Maritime security and safety is another area of shared concern. We both have a common interest in ASEAN centrality and ASEAN-driven platforms,” Jaishankar added.
