India, Russia to sign 10 inter-governmental agreements and 15 commercial deals

New Delhi: Indo-Russian annual summit here on Friday during President Vladimir Putin's state visit will have a strong focus on expanding economic partnership, with the two sides set to ink 10 inter-governmental agreements and 15 commercial deals.

On the eve of the summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will host Putin for a one-on-one dinner here on Thursday where critical issues in bilateral and international spheres, including defence ties, Eurasian stability, Ukraine and financial cooperation, are expected to be discussed. Both are expected to discuss measures to arrive at strategic convergence in key areas.

Last year, during Modi's visit to Moscow, Putin had hosted Modi for a private dinner ahead of the Summit.


As many as seven ministers and a large business delegation including the Russian defence minister, finance minister and central bank governor will be accompanying Putin.

Ahead of his state visit to India, Putin has said that he will discuss expanding Indian imports to Russian markets, adding that Moscow intends to continue deepening economic engagement with its key partners, including India and China.

Speaking at the VTB Investment Forum in Moscow on Tuesday evening, Putin said, "I and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will discuss Indian imports during the upcoming visit", noting that bilateral trade volumes with both India and China have risen sharply over the past three years.

The areas that are under focus for trade and investments include pharma, agriculture, agro-products, fertilisers, engineering goods and IT sector. Among the traditional sectors of cooperation, two sectors will get impetus with this visit - civil nuclear energy and space. Russia could step up supporting small modular reactors in India.