New Delhi(IANS) : Prime Minister Manmohan Singh goes to Moscow Sunday on a two-day visit that will underline India’s commitment to expanding strategic relations with Russia and spur enhanced military and civil nuclear ties with a “time-tested” internationally ally.
Although Manmohan Singh’s annual summit meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin takes place amid some discordant notes in bilateral ties, the two leaders are likely to seize the opportunity to send the message across that “unique and special” ties that bind India and Russia are as relevant as in the days of the Cold War.
The two countries will sign a slew of bilateral agreements relating to trade, energy and technology transfer that will impart a contemporary character to an old relationship based on mutual trust and understanding, an official source told IANS.
This will probably be the last summit meeting between the two leaders ahead of the Russian parliamentary polls next month and the presidential elections early next year. Putin was the chief guest at India’s Republic Day function on Jan 26.
Agreements will be signed on resolving long-pending issues relating to the rupee-rouble trade, on cooperation in preventing drug trafficking and transnational crime as well as on space cooperation.
An agreement on jointly developing and producing multi-role transport aircraft (MTA) with Russia is also likely to be signed during the visit.
A bilateral agreement that will enable Russia to build four additional power reactors at the Kudankulam plant in Tamil Nadu is being firmed up. A protocol of intent for this was signed during Putin’s visit to India in January.
“The two sides are in the final stages of getting significant details in place. If all goes well, the agreement will be signed Monday,” the official added.
If the Kudankulam pact comes through, it will be a big morale booster for the Manmohan Singh government, which is grappling with the consequences of the stalling of the India-US civil nuclear deal that is aimed at re-opening doors of global nuclear commerce for India.
It is not yet clear how Russia can build four additional reactors without a clearance from the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group of which it is a member. Washington is also likely to react adversely to such a move by Moscow.
Russia is, however, confident of selling the Kudankulam project to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) by using the argument that it is an extension of its earlier project of building two power reactors of 1,000 MW that is nearing completion.
Russia was one of the first few countries to promise its support in the powerful NSG after India and the US struck the historic nuclear deal in July 2005.
Besides civil nuclear cooperation, India will take up the issue of delays in arms delivery and cost escalations by Russia – a sore point with the Indian defence establishment that continues to depend on Russia for over 50 percent of military hardware.
Indian defence officials here are unhappy over the Russian attitude of prevarication over delays and supply of spares.
Russia is at least three years behind schedule on a $1.5 billion contract to modernise Admiral Gorshkov, an aircraft carrier India bought from Russia in 2004.
Manmohan Singh will bring up these irritants related to defence deals during his talks with Putin. A resolution of this issue could be an important breakthrough paving the way for smoother India-Russia relations, an official said.
Amid worries in Moscow that New Delhi may cut down supplies of defence hardware from Russia, Manmohan Singh is also likely to assure Putin that Russia continues to be “India’s most important partner in defence cooperation”, despite the emergence of the US and Israel as important suppliers of military hardware to India.
The prime minister will also discuss roadblocks in the form of visa procedures and high transportation costs that are coming in the way of the two countries from realising their trade target of $10 billion by 2010.
But the most important message Manmohan Singh carries to Moscow is India’s enduring commitment to expanding its multi-faceted ties with Russia despite its engagement with other major powers of the world. This is an assurance the Kremlin badly needs.
“Russia occupies a special and unique place in India’s foreign relations. Our time-tested relationship is based on deep mutual trust and understanding,” Manmohan Singh said in an interview to Ria Novosti news agency ahead of his visit to Moscow.