NEW DELHI (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 15th February, 2021) Indian Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla will visit Moscow from February 17-18 to discuss bilateral relations with Russian officials, the Indian Foreign Ministry said.
This will be the first overseas visit by the high-ranking Indian diplomat in 2021.
Indian media reported, citing unnamed sources, that Shringla will discuss issues related to the annual India-Russia summit, as well as the planned visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin to India later this year.
The agenda of the visit may also include a discussion of a roadmap for high-level Russia-India meetings, including dialogues at the level of foreign and defense ministers, as well as strategic dialogue and the BRICS summit that is to be held in India in 2021.
Later in the day, the Indian Foreign Ministry said that Shringla will visit Moscow at the invitation of Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov
"The foreign secretary will hold the next round of India-Russia Foreign Office Consultations with Deputy Foreign Minister Morgulov, during which the two sides will review the entire gamut of bilateral relations, including the forthcoming high-level exchanges," the statement said.
The high-ranking Indian diplomat will also hold a meeting with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey Ryabkov for an exchange of views on topical issues of regional and international importance.
The ministry added that this year's first visit abroad by the foreign secretary to Moscow signifies the importance India attaches to "its close and friendly relations with Russia."
Shringla will later deliver a speech on the India-Russia relations at the Diplomatic academy of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
