VOIWORLD/Sumit Chaturvedi
India is preparing to welcome Russian President Vladimir Putin in the first week of December, with dates being considered between December 4 and 6, sources confirmed. The government is exploring the possibility of hosting the Russian leader outside New Delhi, with Jaipur, Agra, and Goa emerging as the top options.
Ahead of the visit, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is expected in India in November to lay the groundwork. This will mark Putin’s first trip to India since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, and his first since his last visit to New Delhi in 2021.
The visit will take place under the framework of the annual India-Russia summit, a tradition that began in 2000. Since then, 22 such summits have been held alternately in both countries. The most recent summit took place in Moscow on July 8–9, 2024, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi travelled there.
Modi and Putin last met on September 1 in Tianjin during the SCO leaders’ summit, where Modi also confirmed Putin’s India visit. “We’ve been in constant touch. 140 crore Indians are eagerly waiting to welcome you for our 23rd summit in December this year,” Modi had said.
Their meeting came shortly after Washington imposed an additional 25% tariff on Indian imports in response to India’s continued purchase of Russian oil—an issue that has sharpened geopolitical fault lines. During the Tianjin meeting, Modi and Putin reaffirmed cooperation in economic, financial, and energy sectors despite growing Western pressure.
On September 17, Putin called Modi to extend birthday greetings on his 75th birthday, marking their third phone conversation in just over a month—an indication of the close and frequent communication between the two leaders.
