Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke by phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday. The Prime Minister’s Office stated in a statement that both leaders reviewed progress on a number of bilateral cooperation topics and expressed perspectives on regional and global matters of mutual interest, including the recently ended BRICS Summit in Johannesburg.
Putin stated that he would be unable to attend the G20 Summit in New Delhi on September 9-10, 2023, and that Russia would be represented by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. While expressing sympathy for Russia’s decision, Prime Minister Modi thanked Putin for Russia’s constant support for all measures undertaken during India’s G20 presidency.
“Topical issues of Russian-Indian relations, which are progressively developing in the spirit of a particularly privileged strategic partnership, were considered (in the call)”, Reuters quoted a statement by Kremlin.
On September 9 and 10, the G20 summit will be place in New Delhi. On August 25, the Kremlin stated that Putin will not attend the G20 leaders’ conference in the national capital.
“No, the President has no such plans”, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry had said. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin both attended the recently finished BRICS conference in Johannesburg, South Africa, with the Russian leader participating virtually.
Putin stated that Russia wished to put an end to the war in Ukraine that had been “unleashed by the West and its satellites.” “The West’s measures to financially penalize and isolate Russia for sending soldiers into Ukraine are a “illegitimate sanctions practice and illegal freezing of sovereign states’ assets, which effectively amounts to their trampling on all the basic principles and laws of free trade,” he had added.