Medvedev arriving tomorrow; India, Russia to ink several pacts

New Delhi, Dec 19 (PTI) India and Russia are likely to
sign a number of agreements in key areas of defence, civil
nuclear cooperation, space and economy during the visit of
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, who is arriving here
Monday night.
"A number of agreements would be signed. A number of
them are still being discussed... These agreements would in
areas of space, economic and defence sectors," Indian External
Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vishnu Prakash told reporters.
The two sides are expected to sign over 15 pacts
including ones on the Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA)
and civil nuclear cooperation, Russian Ambassador to India
Alexander M Kadakin had said.
The External Affairs Ministry said the two sides will
also look at ways to expand cooperation in the field of
hydrocarbons.
On Tuesday, Medvedev will hold talks with Indian Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh on a range of bilateral and regional
matters, including situation in Afghanistan and Pakistan,
apart from global issues.
"The two countries have a similar perspective on the
terrorism issue... India and Russia are also the members of
the G-20 and work closely for reforms in international
financial system," Prakash said.
Medvedev will meet Indian President Pratibha Patil and
External Affairs Minister S M Krishna on Tuesday. Leader of
opposition Sushma Swaraj, Vice President Hamid Ansari and UPA
Chairperson Sonia Gandhi will also call upon him.
On Wednesday, the Russian President will go to Agra and
also to Mumbai where he will visit IIT, Powai and the Film
City to know more about the Hindi film industry.
Asked if the agreement on the FGFA was going to be signed
during the visit, Prakash said, "That is a long term project
of advance manufacturing and it will have a number of
milestones in it and we don't know whether one or two of them
will be achieved during the meeting here."
Under the deal for the FGFA, likely to be worth over
USD 30 billion, India is planning to co-develop and build an
advanced fighter aircraft which will be similar or more
advanced than the American F/A-22 Raptor.
Asked to comment on the issues raised by the Russians on
the issue of liability clause in the nuclear deal, the
spokesperson said the two sides had signed a framework
agreement for nuclear cooperation during Prime Minister
Vladimir Putin's visit in March this year.
"We see the current conversation for Kudankulam 3 and 4
and as part of the process. This is purely a technical
discussion between both sides and includes whole range of
things including cost and liability and we hope that we will
reach a resolution to all these issues," he said.

A couple of days ago, the Russian Ambassador to India had
said that Moscow was still awaiting a precise explanation on
how the civil nuclear liability law will affect bilateral
cooperation.
Other countries, including the US and France have also
expressed their concerns over the law, passed by Parliament
here in monsoon session, regarding the liability clause for
suppliers in case of nuclear accident. The law caps the
operator's liability at Rs 1,500 crore.
Russia has built two nuclear plants in Kudankulam and is
likely to sign a deal for building another two plants there.
Prakash said both sides are also exploring ways to expand
cooperation in the hydrocarbon sector and developing a roadmap
for it.
Terming cooperation in civil nuclear field and
hydrocarbons as "twin pillars" of the long-term strategic
partnership, he said, "India is a large consumer and Russia
and large producer of hydrocarbons. Russia is looking for an
assured buyer and India needs a stable supplier. So there is
natural synergy in this area between us."
Several senior Russian ministers including Deputy Prime
Minister Sergei Ivanov, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavarov,
Chairman of Central Election Commission of Russia Vladimir
Churov along with a large business group would be the part of
Russian President's delegation.
Enhancing economic relations will be another important
aspect of the visit as both sides feel that business ties were
yet to achieve their potential. Both the countries have set a
trade target of USD 20 billion in next five years.
Prakash said the two countries will also discuss
investment opportunities during the India Russia Trade and
Investment meet being held on Monday.
He said a large number of private agreements in sectors
such as pharmaceutical were also likely to be signed during
the visit. PTI AJD
RET