Hailing India and Russia relations as “very steady” and “very strong”, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said he was “confident” that the annual India-Russia leadership summit, that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin have skipped for two years, will be held in 2024, even as Mr. Putin extended an invitation to PM Modi to visit.
“We will be glad to see our friend, Mr. Prime Minister Modi in Russia,” Mr. Putin told Mr. Jaishankar during a meeting on Wednesday evening in Moscow, official news agencies reported, adding that the Russian President discussed the situation in Ukraine in some detail with the External Affairs Minister.