India and Russia discussed ways to strengthen defence cooperation at a meeting Indian Ambassador in Moscow Vinay Kumar held with Colonel General Aleksandr Fomin, Russia’s Deputy Minister of Defence.
”In the course of the conversation, the parties discussed in detail topical issues of bilateral cooperation in the military and military-technical spheres, and reiterated their focus on further strengthening of specialised cooperation in the spirit of a particularly privileged strategic partnership,” the Russian Defence Ministry said.
The meeting was held in a warm and friendly atmosphere, traditional for Russian-Indian relations.
The meeting came ahead of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s three-day visit to Russia from Sunday to co-chair the 21st meeting of India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Military and Military Technical Cooperation (IRIGC-M&MTC) with Russian Defence Minister Andrey Belousov in Moscow on December 10.
The two leaders will review the entire range of multi-faceted relations between the two countries in the field of defence, including military-to-military and industrial cooperation. They will also exchange views on contemporary regional and global issues of mutual interest.
As part of the visit, the Indian defence minister will also commission the Indian Navy’s latest multi-role stealth guided missile frigate ‘INS Tushil’ at Yantra Shipyard, Kaliningrad on December 9. Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi will accompany Mr Singh for the commissioning ceremony.
In addition, Mr Singh will pay tributes at ‘The Tomb of the Unknown Soldier’ in Moscow to honour the Soviet soldiers killed during the Second World War. He will also interact with the members of the Indian community.