India-Russia Annual Bilateral Summit: PM Modi, Vladimir Putin to ink S-400 air defence deal; Top 6 agenda of today's meet

Russian president Vladimir Putin who is on a two-day visit to India will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi today to initiate the 19th India-Russia Annual Bilateral Summit today.

The agreements to be signed are likely to boost cooperation in keys sectors such as defence, space, trade, energy and tourism, among others. (Narendra Modi/ Twitter)

India-Russia Annual Bilateral Summit: Russian president Vladimir Putin who is on a two-day visit to India will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi today to initiate the 19th India-Russia Annual Bilateral Summit today. The meeting is touted to be crucial as the two leaders will hold comprehensive discussion on several bilateral, regional and international issues including S-400 air defence system deal and the US sanctions on Iranian crude oil. Putin, who was received by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Thursday, went to PM Modi's official residence at Lok Kalyan Marg in New Delhi where the two leaders had a one-on-one meeting. Later, PM Modi hosted a private dinner for the visiting dignitary. The Russian President is accompanied by a high-level delegation comprising Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Trade and Industry Minister Denis Manturov among others during his two-day visit. Here is a list of top agendas of Narendra Modi and Vladimir Putin's meeting at 19th India-Russia Annual Bilateral Summit: i. Both PM Modi and President Putin are likely to discuss and ink the USD 5 billion arms deal of delivery of S-400 air defence missile to New Delhi. Russian President's aide Yuri Ushakov was quoted by media as saying that Russia and India are planning to sign more than 20 documents at the end of the Putin-Modi talks and that Putin will oversee the signing of the USD 5 billion deal. ii. The agreements to be signed are likely to boost cooperation in keys sectors such as defence, space, trade, energy and tourism, among others. iii. The spotlight will be on the S-400 missile defence system deal as, if signed, it could violate US sanctions under the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) instituted by the US Congress on arms purchases from Russia. iv. According to news agency PTI, India has already given indications that it will go ahead with the deal notwithstanding the US sanctions. v. After holding talks with PM Modi, the Russian president will also have a meeting with President Ram Nath Kovind on Friday. He will also interact with a group of talented children and address an India-Russia business meet. vi. As per several media reports, the two countries are also likely to ink a Rs 39,000-crore deal for the supply of Russian S-400 Triumf air defence missile systems to India. The S-400 is capable of destroying incoming aerial targets at a range of 400km.