New Delhi: Russian President Vladimir Putin will be visiting India on Wednesday to attend the 15th annual India-Russia Summit.
Putin will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi tomorrow and will also address a joint session of the Parliament.
During his visit, the Russian president will discuss construction of new nuclear plants besides military and technical cooperation.
A day ahead of his visit, Putin, in an interview to PTI, described Modi as a "reputable political leader, who has already made a significant personal contribution to the promotion of the Russian-Indian cooperation".
Putin said during his sixth visit to India he looked forward to specific steps aimed at "strengthening the privileged strategic partnership" between the two countries during which particular attention would be given to expanding trade and economic links, besides boosting mutual investments.
Listing the joint strategic projects, the President said that these included construction of new units for Indian nuclear power plants, promotion of Russian Sukhoi superjet-100 and MS-21 passenger aircraft to Indian market besides manufacturing of helicopters and creating a "smart city" on the basis of Russian technology.
Dismissing concerns in India about military cooperation between Russia and Pakistan, the President said "we have held talks on Russia's possible assistance in improving effectiveness of counter-terrorism and anti-drug operations".
"In my view, this kind of cooperation serves the long-term interest of all countries in the region, including India," Putin told PTI in a wide-ranging interview a day ahead of his arrival in the Indian capital on a 24-hour visit.
(With PTI Inputs)
