PM, Putin to hold informal summit next week in Sochi

New Delhi: Just weeks after having held informal parleys with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will travel to Russia on May 21 for an “informal summit” with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the external affairs ministry announced on Monday.

This informal summit will be held in the Russian city of Sochi, and will be unstructured, without any set agenda.

“This will be an important occasion for the two leaders to exchange views on international matters in a broad and long-term perspective with the objective of further strengthening our special and privileged strategic partnership,” the ministry of external affairs said in a statement.

It said both the leaders will also discuss their respective national development priorities and bilateral matters. “This informal summit in Sochi between Prime Minister Modi and President Putin is in keeping with the tradition of regular consultations between India and Russia at the highest levels,” the ministry of external affairs said.

Last month, Mr Modi travelled to Wuhan in central China for an informal summit with President Xi.