By IANS,
New Delhi : With Russian conglomerate Sistema voicing its ire over the issue of cancellation of telecom licences in India not being resolved, External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid said Friday that issues of concern between the two countries “will be addresed” when Russian President Vladimir Putin visits India Dec 24 for the annual bilateral summit.
“Issues of concern will be taken up and will be addressed…There are no insurmountable issues,” Khurshid said at a press briefing here.
“We have good relations with Russia and we want to strengthen and enhance it,” he added.
Earlier this month, Sistema said it will seek “billions of dollars” in damages from India if the licence cancellation issue of its Indian telecom venture Sistema Shyam is not resolved in time.
The issue has been hanging fire ever since the Supreme Court passed an order in February cancelling all 122 telecom licences, including of Sistema Shyam Teleservices, following allegations of bribery and corruption in the allocation of 2G spectrum.
Sistema has challenged the court order. It wants the Indian government to find an alternative solution to avoid international arbitration.
Khurshid also said the apex court “may take a fresh look” at the issue.
“When the prime minister meets with President Putin, we will have some adequate answers ready that will bring comfort” to both sides, the minister said.
He also said that the apex court had not taken up a “fifth question” in relation to the matter. “Since the question was not answered, we will draw the court’s attention and bring it to its notice.”
Sistema JSFC holds 56.68 percent stake in SSTL, which operates under MTS brand and the remaining was held by Indian group Shyam. The Russian government has 17.14 percent stake in the company.
Khurshid also said that India and Russia would ink some agreements during Putin’s visit.