PM Modi Welcomes President Putin with Rare Airport Reception, Looks Forward to Strategic Talks

New Delhi, Dec 2025 : Soon after personally travelling to the airport and receiving Russian President Vladimir Putin at the tarmac in a rare and warm diplomatic gesture, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday said he was eagerly looking forward to his interactions with the Russian leader later in the evening and during the formal engagements scheduled for Friday.

Taking to social media platform X, the Prime Minister shared photographs of his meeting with President Putin and wrote, “Delighted to welcome my friend, President Putin to India. Looking forward to our interactions later this evening and tomorrow. India-Russia friendship is a time-tested one that has greatly benefitted our people.”

The two leaders shared a warm hug and greetings at the airport, reflecting the personal rapport that has developed over years of engagement. They then left the airport together in the same vehicle, signalling the importance New Delhi attaches to the Russian President’s two-day State Visit. As part of the ceremonial welcome, the leaders also briefly watched and applauded a traditional cultural performance arranged at the airport.

New Delhi has been adorned with banners and welcome signage for the visiting leader, marking the beginning of a diplomatic engagement that carries significant strategic and geopolitical weight. This is President Putin’s first visit to India since the Russia–Ukraine war began in 2022, making the trip particularly important amid shifting global power equations.

Later in the evening, Prime Minister Modi is scheduled to host President Putin for a private dinner at his official residence, mirroring the warmth shown by the Russian leader when he hosted Modi at his residence during the Prime Minister’s visit to Moscow last year. The private interaction is expected to allow both leaders to discuss sensitive strategic issues in an informal setting.

The high point of the visit will be the 23rd India–Russia Annual Summit, scheduled to take place on Friday. The summit comes at a sensitive time in global geopolitics, particularly as the United States has recently imposed punitive sanctions on New Delhi, and is expected to focus on strengthening defence cooperation, along with deepening ties in the trade and energy sectors.

On Friday, President Putin will be accorded a ceremonial welcome at Rashtrapati Bhavan, following which delegation-level talks will take place at Hyderabad House. During his visit, the Russian President will also lay a wreath at the Mahatma Gandhi memorial at Rajghat, paying tribute to the Father of the Nation.

Ahead of the visit, Russian Presidential Aide Yuri Ushakov described the upcoming private dinner meeting between Putin and Modi as “one of the key points of the Russian leader’s visit”, according to Russia’s state-run news agency TASS. Ushakov said that Putin would hold discussions with Modi on key aspects of bilateral relations as well as major international developments.

According to Ushakov, President Putin will also hold talks with Prime Minister Modi in both restricted and expanded formats. A wide range of issues related to trade, economic cooperation, defence collaboration, and energy security will be discussed. Several bilateral agreements are expected to be signed during the visit. He further stated that both countries plan to sign a programme for the development of strategic areas of economic cooperation extending until 2030.

The visit is also expected to yield agreements to facilitate the movement of Indian workers to Russia, which would significantly boost labour mobility and economic engagement. The two sides may also deliberate on India’s proposed free trade agreement with the Eurasian Economic Union, a key economic bloc led by Russia, which New Delhi views as critical to expanding trade and strategic influence in Eurasia.

Following the formal summit with Prime Minister Modi, President Putin will attend a state banquet hosted by President Droupadi Murmu. In addition, the Russian leader is scheduled to launch the new India channel of Russia’s state-run broadcaster RT, signalling an expansion of media cooperation and soft-power engagement between the two nations.

In an official statement, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the State Visit would provide an opportunity for the leadership of India and Russia to review the overall progress in bilateral relations, set a future vision for strengthening the “Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership,” and exchange views on regional and global issues of mutual interest.

Russia has been a longstanding and time-tested strategic partner of India, and the development of India–Russia relations has remained a key pillar of India’s foreign policy. Since the signing of the “Declaration on the India–Russia Strategic Partnership” in October 2000, bilateral ties have acquired a qualitatively new character, with enhanced cooperation across a wide spectrum including political dialogue, security, defence, trade and economy, science and technology, culture, and people-to-people exchanges.

President Putin’s visit is expected to further consolidate this trusted partnership at a time when the global order is undergoing rapid transformation.

Team Maverick.