New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi held bilateral talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit in Samarkand in Uzbekistan on Friday. Apart from discussing the strategic ties between the two nations, PM Modi received wishes from the Russian President ahead of his birthday on Saturday.
President Putin said that though the Russian tradition doesn’t allow offering greetings in advance, he said he still wishes PM Modi and India the best.
“Tomorrow, my dear friend, you are about to celebrate your birthday. As per Russian tradition, we never offer congratulations in advance. So I cannot do that right now. But I would like you to know that we know about that and we wish you all the best, we wish all the best to the friendly Indian nation and we wish prosperity to India under your leadership,” Putin said.
#WATCH | My dear friend, tomorrow you are about to celebrate your birthday…,says Russian President Vladimir Putin to PM Modi ahead of his birthday
(Source: DD) pic.twitter.com/93JWy2H43S
— ANI (@ANI) September 16, 2022
“The relations between Russia and India are developing and they have the nature of a strategic partnership, and I hope they continue to develop very rapidly. We are actually engaging at international platforms and we are in discussions on all the international issues,” he further added.
Meanwhile, during their talks, PM Modi told President Putin that “today’s era isn’t of war”, referring to the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.
“Today’s era isn’t of war and I have spoken to you about it on the call. Today we will get the opportunity to talk about how can we progress on the path of peace. India-Russia has stayed together with each other for several decades,” ANI quoted PM Modi as saying.
In response, Putin said Russia wanted the war to end as soon as possible.
“I know about your position on the conflict in Ukraine and also about your concerns. We want all of this to end as soon as possible. We will keep you abreast of what is happening there,” the Russian President told PM Modi.
The two leaders also discussed issues pertaining to strategic stability, trade, the situation in the Asia Pacific region and bilateral cooperation within the UN and G20.
