Modi to attend summit with Russia
INDIA said Sunday (11) that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will take part in a regional summit in Uzbekistan that according to Russia will see face-to-face talks between Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping.
The gathering of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) comprising China, Russia, four Central Asian countries - Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan and Tajikistan - India and Pakistan took place in Samarkand on September 15 and 16.
On Wednesday Russia’s ambassador to China said that Putin and Xi would meet at the summit, in what will be the Chinese leader’s first trip abroad since the early days of the coronavirus pandemic. The Indian government statement on Sunday did not say whether Modi would hold bilateral talks with Putin, Xi or - for the first time since he became Pakistani prime minister in April - Shehbaz Sharif.
Sourcing most of its arms from Russia, India like China has refused to condemn Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine and has ramped up purchases of Russian oil.