Pranab Mukherjee to visit Russia

President Pranab Mukherjee will embark on a five-day state visit to Russia on May 7, the external affairs ministry said on Wednesday.

On his first official visit as president, Mukherjee will participate in the celebrations of the 70th anniversary of Victory Day (May 9) to commemorate Russia's victory in the Second World War, Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar told media persons here.

On the occasion, a 75-member Indian Army contingent from the Grenadiers, an infantry regiment, will take part in a military parade in Moscow.

Mukherjee, who will be accompanied by union minister Manoj Sinha on this trip, will hold bilateral talks with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and will meet top officials of Russian universities along with a delegation of vice chancellors of important Indian universities, who will also be travelling with him.

During the presidential visit, India will conclude nine agreements with Russia in science and technology as well as higher education.

Jaishankar said the Department of Science and Technology will sign an agreement with the Russian Science Foundation, while eight more memorandums of understanding will be concluded between Russian universities and Indian Institutes of Technology (Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai), University of Delhi, The Institution of Engineers and the Indian Statistical Institute.

During Putin's state visit to India in December 2014, the two countries agreed on a vision to strengthen their partnership over the next decade.

Going forward, Jaishankar said India was currently undertaking bilateral engagements to translate that vision with Russia whose partnership was considered "special and privileged".

Mutual cooperation in defence, civil-nuclear energy, space science and economic trade constitute the core of the bilateral ties.

Mukherjee, who is visiting Russia at the invitation of Putin, will inaugurate the "Namaste Russia" cultural festival and will also be conferred an honorary doctorate by the Russian Diplomatic Academy. This will be Mukherjee's third such degree Honoris Causa after the ones awarded by the University of Dhaka and Calcutta University earlier.