Modi, Putin discuss cooperation in oil, gas

Trade and investment figured prominently in PM Narendra Modi’s bilateral meetings with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Brazil’s President Michael Temer on the sidelines of BRICS summit here on Monday.

Modi and Putin touched on various aspects of bilateral ties, Indian diplomats said, adding trade and investment was among the issues the leaders discussed. They also discussed cooperation in oil and natural gas. “Furthering a special & privileged strategic partnership,” external affairs ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar tweeted, tagging photos of Modi and Putin shaking hands and sitting for talks.

The meeting between Modi and Putin came three months after they met in St Petersburg in June for the annual India-Russia summit, and at the SCO meeting in Astana the same month where India was made a permanent member of the organisation.

At the St Petersburg summit, the two sides signed an agreement for building Units 5 and 6 of the Kudankulam nuclear power plant in Tamil Nadu, and decided to give new direction to their defence cooperation.

While the focus is on Modi’s meeting with China’s President Xi Jinping on Tuesday, his meeting with Putin assumes significance not only in the context of BRICS but also to keep bilateral ties on track. Russia’s support would have been crucial for India to have prevailed on China to include the names of specific terror groups in the Xiamen statement released earlier on Monday.

Xi also met Putin on Sunday evening, when the two leaders agreed “to appropriately deal with the latest nuclear test conducted” by North Korea.

According to official Xinhua news agency, Putin said it is significant for China and Russia to strengthen their comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination and to boost communication and coordination on major international and regional issues.