Enhancing bilateral consultations in international forums like the UNSC, G-20, BRICS and the East Asia Summit will be high on the agenda of talks between the Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and the Russian President Medvedev, besides matters of International and regional issues of mutual concern.

In his statement prior to his departure for Russia for the India-Russia Annual Summit 2011, this afternoon, Dr. Singh said that he was looking forward to an in depth exchange of views with the Russian leadership on the crisis facing the global economy and the political developments in the extended neighbourhood of India, including West Asia, the Gulf and Afghanistan and the impact of all this on peace and stability in the world. He said the perspectives of both the countries on these developments are marked by a high degree of convergence. PM has left for Moscow a short while ago.

The Prime Minister asserted that New Delhi’s relations with Moscow encompass diverse sectors including nuclear energy, defence, space, science and technology, hydrocarbons, trade and investment and people-to-people exchanges. Dr. Singh said that he will discuss mechanisms to further expand the bilateral cooperation, particularly in the trade, economic and commercial fields.

He said that he will also review with the Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, the progress both the countries have made in bilateral relations since his visit to India in March 2010.