Delayed Narendra Modi-Vladimir Putin meet: Questions raised over PM’s schedule

NEW DELHI: PM Narendra Modi’s meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the BRICS meet in Brazil last week materialised a day after it was originally scheduled, causing some embarrassment to the Indian establishment on PM’s first foray on the global stage.

However, the incident was not all that unusual given that there have been several such instances in the past when the Indian PM has had to reschedule or cancel bilateral meetings at a multilateral event.

Modi and Putin were scheduled to meet on Monday evening last week in what was to be a back to back interaction for the Indian Prime Minister at Fortaleza. The leaders of close allies India and Russia were scheduled to meet after Modi met Chinese President Xi Jinping for the first time.

However, the Modi-Putin meet had to be rescheduled as the Russian President’s arrival in Fortaleza from Brasilia got delayed after his meeting with his Brazilian host lasted beyond schedule. This provoked much speculation and comment over whether the first meeting between the two leaders could have been better scheduled. The officials who accompanied the PM to the trip, however, told ET that such rescheduling of meetings between heads of government.