Russian lawmaker Vyacheslav Volodin arrives in India for official talks

The Chairman of the Russian parliament's lower house, Vyacheslav Volodin, arrived in India on Monday for an official visit.

His discussions with Indian leaders will focus on improving cooperation in economic, cultural, educational, and technological fields, alongside strengthening inter-parliamentary dialogue between the two nations.

Sharing the pictures of his arrival on X, the Russian Embassy in India wrote, "Chairman of the State Duma Vyacheslav Volodin arrived on an official visit to #India. In #NewDelhi, issues of #RussiaIndia cooperation in economic, cultural, educational & technological spheres, as well as the development of interparliamentary dialogue will be discussed.

In another post, the embassy added, "Meetings of the Chairman with the Indian leadership and a visit to both houses of the Parliament of #India are planned."

Meanwhile, Russian President Vladimir Putin is also expected to visit India for the annual summit this year. The dates for the visit will be worked out through diplomatic channels, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a weekly press briefing last month.

The last annual summit was held in Moscow, for which Prime Minister Modi travelled to Moscow. The next summit is scheduled to be held in India next year, and the dates for the same will be finalized through diplomatic channels, Jaiswal said.

President Putin has received an invitation to visit India from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and the dates for his visit will be set in early 2025, Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov said on December 2.

While addressing a briefing, Ushakov stated that Putin and PM Modi have an agreement to hold meetings once a year and it is Russia's turn this time, according to the Russian Embassy in India.

"Our leaders have an agreement to hold meetings once a year. This time, it's our turn," the diplomat stated, adding, "We received Mr Modi's invitation and we will certainly consider it positively."

Notably, this will be Putin's first visit to India since the beginning of the conflict between Ukraine and Russia in 2022. India has always advocated "peace and diplomacy" for resolving the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.