The Russian Deputy Foreign Minister, Mr. Alexei Borodavkin with the Union Finance & External Affairs Minister, Shri Pranab Mukherjee at a meeting, in New Delhi on February 25, 2009.

The month of February 2009 witnessed considerable bilateral activity aimed at furthering the variegated facets of the India-Russia relationship.

Visit of Delegations
Ms. L.K. Ponappa, Deputy National Security Advisor, led a delegation of the Indian National Security Council Secretariat to Moscow from 2-5 February. She held discussions with her Russian counterpart, Mr. V P Nazarov, during the India-Russia Joint Coordination Group (JCG) meeting between the Security Councils of the two countries. The JCG was set up in 2001 and has been meeting regularly.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mr. A N Borodavkin visited India on 25 February and met Mr. N Ravi, Secretary (East) in the Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi. Mr. Borodavkin was also received by External Affairs Minister, Shri Pranab Mukherjee. Mr. Madhavan Nair, Chairman, ISRO led a delegation to Moscow from 26-28 February and held discussions with Mr. A N Perminov, his counterpart in the Russian Federal Space Agency (Roskosmos).

Meeting of Sub-group on Shipbuilding

Signing of protocol

The Thirteenth Meeting of the Sub-group on Shipbuilding under the Indo-Russian Inter-Governmental Commission on Military Technical Cooperation was held at Cochin from 03 to 06 February under the Co-Chairmanship of Vice Admiral Ganesh Mahadevan, Controller of Warship Production & Acquisition, Integrated Headquarters (Navy) and Mr. L.V.Strugov, Chief of the Shipbuilding Department, Federal Agency of Industry of the Russian Federation. Over 40 representatives from the Department of Shipbuilding Industry, Rosoboronexport and various OEMs and Indian representatives from the Ministry of Defence, IHQ(Navy), Mazagon Docks Limited (MDL) and Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE) participated.  Various issues pertaining to Shipbuilding were discussed and resolved and a Protocol on resolving the remaining issues through mutual cooperation was signed. 

Aero India Airshow

The 7th Aero India Air Show organized by the Ministry of Defence, Government of India and managed by Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) was held at Air Force Station Yelahanka, Bengaluru, from 11 to 15 February.   A total of 289 Indian firms and 303 foreign companies from 25 countries participated in the exhibition. The Air Show was opened with a MiG-35 aircraft piloted by an Indian - Russian crew which performed one of the most difficult aerobatic maneuvers known as the Cobra.  An Indian journalist, Ms Suman Sharma, also performed a flight on the Russian MiG-35 fighter. Russian Helicopters JSC along with its Indian joint venture partner Vectra Group announced that they would launch an MRO (maintenance, repair, overhaul) facility near Chandigarh to service Russian-made civil aircraft.   Sukhoi Design Bureau (SDB), designer of Su-30 MKI aircraft and Irkut Corporation, manufacturer of Su-30 MKI fighter aircraft, won a special prize from India’s Force Magazine and were acknowledged as the best program of India’s military-technical cooperation with foreign countries in combat aviation. 

Exchanges in the Economic Sphere

On the economic front, a delegation led by Mr. V.S. Vijayaraghavan, Chairman, Coir Board, visited Moscow from 17-21 February 2009 to participate in CAFLEX (Carpets and Flooring World) 2009. It had meetings with representatives of Chamber of Commerce & Industry of the Russian Federation and Moscow Chamber of Commerce & Industry. The Cotton Textiles Exports Promotion Council of India (TEXPROCIL), Mumbai, participated in the Textillegprom Fair held in Moscow from 17th to 20th February 2009. Mr. Rajesh Satnam, Deputy Director, represented the Council at the event.

Tea Symposium

Indian Ambassador Shri. P.P. Shukla at the Tea Board stall

A ten member delegation of the Tea Board of India led by its Chairman, Mr Basudev Banerjee, visited Russia from 8 to 12 February. The First International Tea Symposium was organized by Rusteacoffee Association at the World Trade Centre in Moscow on 09 February. The Tea Board of India was the major sponsor of the two-day event, which was attended by 300 guests from 12 countries. It was a unique event which brought together major players in the Tea business from Russia, CIS and other countries under one platform. The Symposium was opened by Mr. Michael Bunston, Chairman of the International Tea Committee. Mr Banerjee, in his address, informed the guests about innovations of the Indian tea market directed specifically at Russia.

Tea Auction

View of Tea Board’s pavilion

A well received Charitable Tea Auction aimed at enhancing the image of Indian tea in the Russian market was organised at the World Trade Centre in Moscow on 09 February. A short film on the auction system in India which explained the whole process in brief was screened for heads of major tea importing companies and renowned Russia Tea Tasters. Tea-Tasting session were also organised at the World Trade Centre on the same day. The delegation had meetings with officials of the Ministry of Agriculture and Ministry of Economic Development and Trade of the Russian Federation on 10 February. Mr. Banerjee also visited the Tea Board of India pavilion at the Prodexpo 2009 on 11 February.

Cultural exchange

On the cultural side, a day of Indian culture was organized in Tver on 7 February by ‘Say 2 U’, an online magazine run by members of the Indian community in Russia and the Indian Cultural Centre in Tver. Artists of the Jawaharlal Nehru Cultural Centre (JNCC) were specially invited to perform at the occasion. Music and dances groups of Tver “Energy Born With You”, “Bharat” and “Amrapali” also presented their programmes during the event, which was attended by an audience of over 300.