File Picture Courtesy : Business Standard
Defence minister Niramala Sitharaman will be travelling to Russia next week to attend the seventh Moscow Conference on International Security in the capital. Incidentally, it will be her first visit to Russia in her capacity as the defence minister.
During her three-day tour, between 3 and 5 April, she will participate in the VII Moscow Conference on International Security, according to a statement from Indian Embassy in Moscow. Sitharaman will also meet her Russian counterpart army general Sergei Shoigu, and other senior leaders, it said.
“The visit is in keeping with the tradition of high level exchanges between India and Russia. It will provide an opportunity to reinforce the traditional warm and friendly relations that exists between the two countries with particular reference to military technical cooperation,” the statement said.
A nearly Rs 400 billion deal to procure S-400 Triumf air defence missile systems from Russia s yet to be concluded mainly due to differences over price which India would look to sort out during Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s upcoming visit to Moscow, official sources said.
India according to media reports, wants to procure the long-range missile systems to tighten its air defence mechanism, particularly when China has been ramping up its military manoeuvring along the nearly 4,000 km Sino- India border.
