India, Russia sign civil nuclear, defence, space agreements

India and Russia today took their strategic partnership to a new level by signing a slew of agreements, including some long-pending defence accords and pacts that will strengthen their cooperation in the areas of civil nuclear energy and space.

The agreements were signed after nearly two hours of talks between Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin, who was on a day's working visit to India.

Dr Singh told journalists after the meeting that the two sides had held very comprehensive and in-depth discussions on bilateral, regional and global issues.

He said India attached the highest importance to his visit and described him as the architect of the strategic partnership between the two countries.

"We owe a deep sense of gratitude to him for bringing our two countries so close to each other," he said.

Dr Singh said he had conveyed to Mr Putin that relations with Russia were key pillar of India's foreign policy and that it regarded Russia as a "trusted and reliable strategic partner".

"Ours is a relationship that not only stands independent of any other, but whose significance has grown over time. Our partnership covers areas such as defence, civil nuclear energy, space, science and technology, hydrocarbons, trade and investment," he said.

The Prime Minister said that, in the run-up to and during Mr Putin's visit, the two countries had finalised several important and long-pending defence cooperation projects which would deepen their long-standing partnership in this vital sector.

Apart from the Inter-Governmental Agreement on Cooperation in Atomic Energy and a roadmap for construction of nuclear power plants, the two sides also signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for bilateral cooperation in Russia’s satellite navigation system has been agreed upon.

The Director General, State Corporation “ROSATOM” of Russia, Sergey Kirienko and the Secretary, Department of Atomic Energy, Sree Kumar Banerjee signing the agreements between two governments on Cooperation in the use of Atomic Energy for Peaceful Purpose and Road Map for the Serial Construction of Russian Designed Nuclear Power Plants in the Republic of India in the presence of the Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, Vladimir V. Putin and the Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, in New Delhi on March 12, 2010.

The two countries also agreed to strengthen their cooperation in hydrocarbons through greater collaboration between their oil and gas companies. They also signed agreements in the areas of fertilisers. The two sides identified information technology and telecommunications as focus areas for future economic cooperation.

Russia is building nuclear power stations for India at Kudankulam in Tamil Nadu and the Centre has already said that Russia had been allocated another site, Haripur in West Bengal, for some more nuclear power stations, construction for which is likely to begin by 2017.

"The outcomes of Prime Minister Putin’s visit are therefore rich and very substantive," Dr Singh said.

Stating that he had detailed discussions with Mr Putin on regional and global issues, the Prime Minister said there was much that India and Russia could do together to advance global peace and stability and the process of global economic revival.

He said the two countries had agreed to intensify their consultations on Afghanistan and the challenges posed by terrorism and extremism in their region.

"I am very happy to state that my discussions with Prime Minister Putin have reinforced the strong ties of friendship that bind our two countries together," he added.

The agreements on civil nuclear energy were signed by Atomic Energy Commission Chairman and Secretary, Department of Atomic Energy Sreekumar Banerjee and Mr Sergey Kirienko, Director General of Rosatom.

The MoU on the joint enterprise for production of satellite navigation equipment and services for civilian users was signed between Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Chairman K Radhakrishnan and Mr Anatoly Shilov, Deputy Head of the Russian Federal Space Agency.

The MoU between the two Governments on cooperation in the fertilisers sector was signed by Russian Deputy Minister of Industry & Trade Denis Manturov and Fertilisers Secretary S Krishnan.

IFFCO Managing Director Uday Shanker Awasthi and Fosagro Director General Maxim Volkov signed a framework agreement on the import of di-ammonium phosphates from Russia.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh with the Russian Prime Minister Vladimir V. Putin, at the delegation level talks, in New Delhi on March 12, 2010.

The defence pacts signed today include various supplementary contracts related to aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov, currently being retrofitted in Russia for the Indian Navy. The aircraft carrier, rechristened by India as INS Vikramaditya, comes with a price tag of $ 2.3 billion.

The two countries have also signed a $ 1.5 billion contract for the supply of 29 more MiG-29K carrier-based fighter jets to India.

Mr Mikhail Pogosyan, head of Russian Aircraft Corporation MiG was quoted as saying in media reports that the supplies of the aircraft were scheduled for 2012. He said Russia would complete deliveries of the previously-ordered MiG-29K fighters to India by the end of this year.

Mr Putin said that Russia had no plans for developing military cooperation with Pakistan, taking into account the "concerns of our Indian friends".

During the day, Mr Putin met President Pratibha Patil and ruling United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Chairperson Sonia Gandhi.

NNN