Chairman of the State Duma: cooperation between Russia and India is a special and privileged strategic partnership

During the official visit to India, the Chairman of the State Duma Vyacheslav Volodin Volodin
Vyacheslav Victorovich The Chairman of the State Duma of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation of the eighth convocation. Elected in single mandate constituency № 163 (Saratov constituency - Saratov Oblast) met with the President of the Republic Droupadi Murmu.

The Chairman of the State Duma expressed gratitude to the President of India for holding meeting with the Russian delegation.

“I would like to convey to you greetings and best wishes from our President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin,” said Vyacheslav Volodin. “Strengthening cooperation with India is one of main priorities of our foreign policy,” he added.

The relationship between the two countries is built on the principles of friendship, trust, and mutual respect, according to the Chairman of the State Duma.

“Cooperation between Russia and India has turned into a special and privileged strategic partnership. This is due to contribution and contacts between the Russian and Indian leadership,” he noted.

Vyacheslav Volodin informed Droupadi Murmu about the productive meetings he had with the heads of both chambers of the Parliament. According to him, all political factions of the State Duma stand for building cooperation with their Indian colleagues. “In this regard, it is very important to make parliamentary dimension more effective, so that we can contribute to the development of relations,” he added.

The President of India noted the special nature of the partnership between the two countries and said that the leadership of the Republic “attaches great importance to building trade and economic cooperation and developing socio-cultural dialogue”. Droupadi Murmu also asked to convey words of gratitude to the Russian leader for his contribution to the development of relations between the two countries.

“I am glad that the inter-parliamentary dialogue between our countries is strengthening. There are regular contacts between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Vladimir Putin. We also have interaction within the framework of the intergovernmental commission. That proves that bilateral relations are very important to us,” emphasized the President of India.

According to her, an integral part of the Indian-Russian partnership is common understanding of each other's interests and priorities: this helps encourage more trust between the countries.

Droupadi Murmu also noted the special attention paid by both India and Russia to cultural exchanges and the development of relations between nations. “I have recently opened a book fair in New Delhi, where Russia is also a participant. This gives Indian readers a great opportunity to learn more about Russian literature. We should encourage such cultural ties,” stressed the President of India.

The Chairman of the State Duma expressed gratitude to the leadership of the Republic for supporting Russia in the current geopolitical conditions. “Thank you for your attitude towards our country in such a difficult time,” he added.

The Minister of Energy of the Russian Federation Sergei Tsivilev also attended the meeting.

The Chairman of the State Duma is paying an official visit to the Republic of India at the invitation of the Speaker of the Lok Sabha of the Parliament of India. Vyacheslav Volodin has already met with the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha of the Parliament, Vice President of the Republic Jagdeep Dhankhar and the Speaker of the Lok Sabha of the Parliament of India Om Birla. Issues of cooperation between Russia and India in economic, socio-cultural, educational and technological areas, as well as further development of inter-parliamentary dialogue will be discussed during the visit.