Russian President Putin to visit India on December 4-5

The Russian lower house of Parliament is set to ratify a crucial military pact with India ahead of President Vladimir Putin’s state visit on December 4-5 for the 23rd bilateral summit, according to reports. Signed on February 18, 2025 in Moscow by the Indian Ambassador Vinay Kumar and erstwhile Deputy Defence Minister Alexander Fomin the Reciprocal Exchange of Logistics Agreement (RELOS) is to enhance military cooperation between the two strategic partners. The State Duma has uploaded the RELOS in its ratification database along with the Russian government’s note and said that “the Russian government believes that the ratification of the document will strengthen cooperation between Russia and India in the military sphere”, official news agency TASS reported. The RELOS agreement aims to streamline coordination for joint military exercises, disaster relief and other operations.

"The visit is of great importance, providing an opportunity to comprehensively discuss the extensive agenda of Russian-Indian relations within the particularly privileged strategic partnership in the political, trade, economic, scientific, technological, cultural, and humanitarian spheres, as well as to consider topical international and regional issues," the Kremlin said in a statement.

"The forthcoming state visit will provide an opportunity for the leadership of India and Russia to review progress in bilateral relations, set the vision for strengthening the 'Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership' and exchange views on regional and global issues of mutual interest," the MEA said in a brief statement in New Delhi. PM Modi and Putin will hold talks during the summit, focussing on defence, energy, trade and bilateral relations.

Analysts note that Russia faces a shortage of skilled professionals in construction, metallurgy, engineering, and electronics, creating potential employment opportunities for over 70,000 Indian workers and experts. Talks on formalizing such cooperation are expected during the visit. This marks Putin’s first visit to India since 2021.