Modi lands in Russia for summit with Putin; nuke deal, Syria among issues

Sochi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrived in Russia's Black Sea coastal city Sochi on Monday for an informal summit with President Vladimir Putin that will focus on pressing global and regional issues, including impact of the US withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal.

The aim of the informal summit is to use the friendship and trust between the two countries to create convergence on key global and regional issues, official sources said.

They said the two leaders will meet for around four to six hours for the "agendaless" talks where deliberations on bilateral issues are likely to be very limited.

"Greetings to the friendly people of Russia. I look forward to my visit to Sochi tomorrow and my meeting with President Putin. It is always a pleasure to meet him," Modi had tweeted on Sunday.

 "Am confident the talks with President Putin will further strengthen the Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership between India and Russia," Modi had tweeted.

 The issues on the table may include economic impact on India and Russia in the wake of the US withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal, situation in Afghanistan, Syria, threat of terrorism and matters relating to upcoming SCO (Shanghai Cooperation Organisation) and BRICS summits.