DialogueAmongCivilizations:TheIndiaRussiaEngagement

AddressbyH.E.Mr.AjaiMalhotra, AmbassadorofIndiatotheRussianFederation, attheSt.PetersburgHumanitarianUniversityofTradeUnions St.Petersburg,17thApril2012

Thank you for the opportunity to address you in this landmark year as we celebratethe65th anniversaryoftheestablishmentofdiplomaticrelationsbetween India and Russia. As this talk is being delivered in the context of the Dialogue AmongCivilisations,Iwillfirstdelveintothehistorical rootsofourfriendship, especially in the St. Petersburg context, and then assess the present status of our bilateralties. Whileourdiplomatictiesgobacksixtyfiveyears,theengagementofIndiaand Russiawitheachotherhasalongandillustriouspast,withnumerousthreadslinking ourpeoplesandcivilizationstogether. ItwasthevisittoIndiain1469bytheTvermerchantAfanasyNikitinthatfirst gave historical salience to our relationship. Nikitin arrived in India almost three decadesbeforeVascodaGamalandednearCalicutin1498!Hespentthreeyearsin theBahmanikingdomatBidarintheDeccanandwroteabouthisexperiencesinhis travelogueJourneyBeyondtheThreeSeas. Inturn,Indianmerchantsand traders landed inAstrakhan around 1615and constitutedathrivingcommunitythatflourishedtheretillthemiddleofthenineteenth century. They were particularly well regarded by the Tsars in Moscow and even introducedatextileindustrythereinthemiddleoftheseventeenthcentury. GerasimLebedevofYaroslavl,spenttwelveyearsinIndiafrom1785,andis widely regarded as having pioneered Indology in Russia. He was one of the first RussianscholarstowriteaboutIndiaandtolearnHindi,BengaliandSanskrit.Healso

foundedthefirstEuropeanstyledramatheatreinIndiain1795atCalcutta,translated EuropeandramasintoBengali,organizedthefirstmodernshowingofBengalitheatre in India, compiled several books on linguistics, and published the first Bengali Russian dictionary. At the request of Tsar Alexander I, Lebedev arranged for the printingofSanskritinDevnagritypefaceatStPetersburg. Acertain spiritualaffinityalsounderliestheextraordinaryculturalresonance betweenIndiaandRussia.Asearlyasin 1788,NikolaiNovikovintroducedthefirst Russian translation of the Bhagavad Gita, one of the defining treatises of Indian thought.Duringthenineteenthcentury,manyRussianacademicsfromSt.Petersburg devotedlypioneeredandcontributedtotherichtraditionofIndologyinRussia.Count NovarovsetupaSanskritchairin1835,whenhewasMinisterofPublicInstruction andPresidentoftheImperialAcademyofSciencesinStPetersburg.Thefollowing year,Prof.PavelYakovlevichPetrovtranslatedpartofthe Ramayana intoRussian, addinggrammaticalnotesandaSanskritglossary. Petrovwastolateroccupytwo Chairs of Sanskrit, one at Kazan University in 1841 and the other at Moscow Universityduring18521875. ThefirstSanskritRussiandictionary was published inSt.Petersburg inthe secondhalfofthenineteenthcentury.TheremarkableRussianscholar,IvanPavlovich Minayev,whowasProfessorofSanskritandlaterProfessorofComparativeGrammar at St Petersburg University, puttogether a valuable library of Indian manuscripts. MinayevvisitedIndiaonthreeoccasionsbetween1874and1886,travelledextensively acrossit,andleftbehindavastscholarlylegacy.Hewasanobserveratthefoundingof theIndianNationalCongressin1885andwasfriendlywiththeleaderoftheIndian independencemovementBalGangadharTilakandliteraryluminaryBankimChandra Chatterji. Minayevs pupil Dr. Sergei Oldenburg started the Bibliotheca Buddhistica seriesin1897.Anotherpupilofhis,Prof.FyodorSherbatskoi,emergedasanauthority onIndianphilosophy,literatureandBuddhism,publishedmanyvolumesinhisareaof specialization,includingabookonthetheoryofIndianpoetrybroughtoutin1902. Morerecently,thephilologistAlexeiPetrovichBarannikov,whotaughtatLeningrad StateUniversity,translatedTulsidass Ramacharitamanas in1948 as well as many otherworksfromHindiintoRussian.

Turningtoart,severaleminentRussianstouredIndiainthenineteenthcentury, chroniclingtheirexperiencesoncanvasandpaper.Amongstthemweretwoeminent citizens of St. Petersburg, Grand Duke Alexey Saltykov and Vasily Vereshchagin. Saltykov visited India in 18411843 and 18441846 and his book of letters and drawings published soon thereafter caught the imagination of the Russian public. VereshchaginfirstvisitedIndiaduring18741876,andhisworksdepictIndiaspeople, landscapes,anditsarchitecturalmonuments,donewithremarkableattentiontocolour anddetail.Vereshchaginsportrayalof TheStateProcessionofthePrinceofWales intoJaipurin1876 issaidtobeoneofthelargestpaintingsintheworld.In1882 1883,hetraveledtoIndiaandrealisticallydepictedinthepaintingBlowingfromGuns inBritishIndia theexecutionofIndiansoldierstiedtocannonbarrels,reminding foreverofthisappallingbehaviourbytheBritishcolonialistsinIndia. Another famous Russian, Helena Petrovna Blavatsky, drew inspiration from Indiawhereshe firstarrivedin1852andwhereshespentmanyyearsoverthenext fewdecades.ShewasoneofthefoundersoftheTheosophicalSocietyin1875,with themottoThereisnoreligionhigherthantruth. TherearealsowellrecordedcontactsinvolvingRussianroyaltyandIndia.Thus, TsarevichNicholas Alexandrovich (laterTsarNicholasII)travelledacrossIndiain December 1890January 1891 as part of a world voyage and visited most of its importantcities.GrandDukeBorisVladimirovich,agrandsonofTsarAlexanderII, visited India in 1902, and went tiger hunting in the Punjab with his friend the MaharajaofKapurthala. In the field of science, the eminent Russian microbiologist Vladimir AaronovichHaffkinefirstarrivedinIndiain1893andworkedinBombayfortwenty two years. He established the infectious origin of cholera and invented vaccines againstplagueandcholera,HewasalsothefounderandthefirstDirectorin1899of theAntiPlagueLaboratoryinBombay,whichwaslaterrenamedinhishonourasthe HaffkineInstitute. Onanotherplane,thegreatRussiannovelistCountLevTolstoywasfascinated byHinduandBuddhistscriptures,wasfamiliarwiththethinkingofhiscontemporary SriRamakrishna,andwasprofoundlyimpactedbySwamiVivekananda.Tolstoy,in turn,wastohaveaverydeepinfluenceonthefatherofournation,MahatmaGandhi,

inhisearlyyearsinSouthAfrica.GandhijiwasparticularlyimpressedbyTolstoys thoughtsaboutnonviolentresistanceand therenunciation offorceasameans of opposition.Thecorrespondencetheyexchangedduring19091910iswellchronicled. TheirfriendshipinspiredGandhijitoestablishTolstoyFarmnearJohannesburg,for hisearlyexperimentsinnonviolence,truth,andselfrealisationthroughcommunity service. Turningtothepoliticalarena,therevolutionaryandactivistM.N.Roymetwith V.I.LenininMoscowin1920andmaintainedclosetieswiththeSovietleadership, particularlyduringthe1920s. AuniqueplaceinIndiaRussiaculturalinteractionisoccupied bythewell known Roerich family. The outstanding artist, philosopher, and traveler, Nicholas Roerich,firstcame to Indiain1923,makingithishomeandmaintainingwithhis familyalonganddeepassociationwithIndia.WithhiswifeElena,hefoundedin 1928theInstituteofHimalayanStudies,Urusvati,andlivedinKulutillhisdeathin 1947. Theirolderson,GeorgeRoerich,leftbehindmuchscholarlyworkonTibetan Buddhism.Theiryoungerson,SvetoslavRoerich,marriedthefamousactressDevika RaniandtheylivedinBangalore,India,tilltheypassedawayintheearly1990s. Pandit JawaharlalNehruandhissisterVijayaLakshmiPanditfirstvisitedthe SovietUnionin1927,accompanyingtheirfatherMotilalNehruforthecelebrations markingthetenthanniversaryofthe1917Revolution.Twentyyearslater,Nehruwas tosendVijayaLakshmiPanditasIndiasfirstAmbassadortotheSovietUnion.He wasalsotopaytwomorevisitstotheUSSR,in1955and1961,asthePrimeMinister ofindependentIndia. Gurudev Rabindranath Tagores poetry was widely admired in pre revolutionary as well as postrevolutionary Russia, for its passionate appeal for universal peace, love and harmony. Tagores longheld desire to visit Russia was finallyfulfilledin1930.ThelettersTagorewrotefromRussiawerepublishedthe followingyearinabooktitled RussiarChithi (LettersfromRussia).Hewasdeeply impressedbyRussiasremarkableprogressinashortspanoftimeandattributeditto the spread of basic education across the country. He contrasted this with the continuing, widespread illiteracy in Britishrun India, leading to his book being bannedbytheBritish.Inaninterviewto Izvestia whilehewasinMoscow,Tagore

sharplycriticizedthelackof"freedomofthemind"thatheobservedinRussia.This ledtoitspublicationbeingblockedbySovietofficials,andIzvestiafinallypublished theinterviewonlyin1988!Shortlybeforehisdeathin1941,duringthedarkestdaysof WorldWarII,TagorepredictedthatRussiawouldbevictoriousagainstthefascists, foreseeingtheheroismoftheRussianpeople. Turningtoourdiplomaticties,thefirstRussianrequesttohaveadiplomatic missionbasedinIndiawasmadeinNovember1858.Overfortyyearswouldelapse beforeVasilyOscarovichvonKlemmfinallyopenedthefirstRussianpostinIndiaon November22,1900,asthefirstConsuloftheRussianEmpireinBombay.AsIndia wasthenacolony,ithadtobeaConsularpostandnotanEmbassy.Klemmattended theDelhiDurbarin1903andworkedinBombayuntil1906.InNovember1905,the RussianConsulateinBombaywasupgradedtoaConsulateGeneralwhilein1910it shiftedtoCalcutta,thethenseatoftheBritishIndiangovernment. WiththesupportoftheRussianConsulateinBombay,twosteamshiplineswere startedin1902andbecamethearteriesofIndianRussiantrade.AsperofficialBritish statistics,over90%ofkeroseneimportedintoIndiain19001901wasdeliveredfrom Russia, coming from Baku via Batumi to Bombay. At the start of the twentieth century,RussiawasthelargestbuyerofIndiantea,aftertheBritish,doingsothrough teatraderssuchas"Gubkin&Kouznetsov. All these examples reveal a pattern of dialogue that encompasses several differentspheresandcommenceswellbeforeweestablisheddiplomaticties.So,itis notsurprisingthatIndiaandtheSovietUnionactuallyestablisheddiplomaticrelations alittleoverfourmonthsbeforeIndiabecameindependent,doingsoonApril13,1947. The period since 1955 witnessed a remarkable expansion in our bilateral economicties,whichalsohelpedlaythefoundationsofIndia'sindustrialstructure. The steel plants set up at Bhilai, Bokaro and Durgapur, became symbols of this friendship.Theexpansioninmilitarytechnicalcooperationinthelate1960s,aswell as the signing of the IndoSoviet Treaty of Peace, Friendship and Cooperation in August1971,wereimportantmilestonesinbuildingIndia'ssecurityenvironment. Fortifiedbynumeroussummitlevelexchanges,wemaintainedverycloseand friendlycontactsthroughthefollowingdecades,despitedifferencesinourpolitical and economic systems. The former Soviet Union (and subsequently the Russian

Federation) played an important role in India's quest for security and economic development and it seemed almost preordained that our partnership would evolve further. Moreover, Russias emergence as a fullfledged democracy in the 1990s, broughtusevenclosertogether. TheDeclarationonStrategicPartnershipbetweenIndiaandRussia,signedin October2000,recognizedthecontinuingimportanceandrelevanceofourfriendship. Itimpartedaqualitativelynewcharacterandlongtermperspectivetoourmultifaceted bilateralcooperation.RussiawasthefirstcountrywithwhichIndiainstitutionalized the practice of convening Annual Summits. This reflected our shared desire to consistently promote andguide our ties at thehighest level. These ties developed furtheroverthenextdecadetoreachtheelaborateSpecialandPrivilegedStrategic Partnershipthatwejointlyannouncedin2010.Itisapartnershipthatisunique,multi dimensionalandmultifaceted,onethatis deeprooted,rocksolid,andexemplaryin manyways. Ourpartnershipextendsbeyondregularandproductivepoliticalinteractionat theSummitandotherlevelsandcloseculturallinkages,tolongtermcooperationin suchkeyareasasdefence,space,nuclearenergy,science&technology,andtrade& economic cooperation. We continue to promote cooperation in these sectors as a matterofhighimportanceandexertefforttoseethattradeandinvestmentinpriority sectorssuchasoilandgas,pharmaceuticals,andinformationtechnology,reflectthe sizeofourlargeeconomiesandourcomplementaritiesinthosesectors.Cooperation is also being enhanced in such fields as biotechnology, nanotechnology, medical sciences,agrochemicals,andmeteorology.Weareespeciallysupportiveofinitiatives that promote peopletopeople exchanges, including between our entrepreneurs, academics,parliamentarians,youth,artistes,journalists,andothers. The goodwill and trust between us is reflected in the evolution of our cooperationinsensitiveareas.Ourmilitarytechnicaltiesstretchbackhalfacentury andhavetransformedovertheyearsfromasimplebuyersellerrelationshipintoone involving joint research, development and production of sophisticated defense systems. TheBrahmoscruisemissileisafineexampleofthistrend.Besidesit,the manufactureofT90tanksandSU30MKIfighteraircraftarealsobeingundertaken inIndia.Wearealsocooperatinginthe jointdevelopmentofthe FifthGeneration Fighter Aircraft and a Multirole Transport Aircraft. These joint design and

developmentprojectsfornewweaponsystemsandplatformsarealso evidenceofa dynamic defence relationship. Russia remains Indias largest partner in military technicalcooperationandviceversa,withgoodprospectsforcontinued longterm cooperation. IndiaRussiacooperationinthepeacefuluseofnuclearenergyisanotherwell developedpillarofourbilateralties.TwonuclearpowerplantsatKudankulamare nearingcompletion,whilenegotiationsforconstructionoftwomoreunitsatthesame siteareatanadvancedstage. InMarch2010,weconcludedanInterGovernmental Agreement for broad based cooperation in peaceful uses of nuclear energy, and finalizedaRoadMaptoguideourfuturecooperationactivities.Thiscooperationisan importantpartofthelongtermenergysecuritypartnershipweenvisagewithRussia, composedofcooperationinnuclearenergyandhydrocarbons. As regards science and technology, the IndiaRussia Integrated Long Term ProgrammeofCooperationinScience&Technologyisthemostextensivescientific collaborationprogrammethatIndiaorRussiahaseverenteredinto.Underit,wehave setupjointcentresofexcellencetopromoteresearchinpowdermetallurgy,vaccine development,supercomputing,biotechnology,biomedicine,gashydratestudies,and earthquakeresearch,tonameafewfields.IthasalsoyieldedIndiasfirstindigenous poliovaccinemanufacturingplant,theIndusIsynchrotron,sensitizedIndianmedical expertstotherapyforTBandburnpatients,promotedintegrationofseismicsensor recorders,developmentofaccelerators,laserequipment,highspeedxraycameras, boronnitridecuttingtools,poroussiliconluminescentdevices,superplasticmaterials, coldcoatingtechnologies,etc.Matchingourcapabilities,wehavecofundedmega projectsinsolarenergy,civilaviation,nanotechnology,healthcare,etc.,whichare capableofmakingmajorsocietalandeconomicimpact. An IndoRussian Science and Technology Centre, with branches in New DelhiandMoscow,hasbeensetuptofacilitatecommercializationoftheoutcomeof jointlydevelopedresearchandofIndian/Russiantechnologiesineachotherscountry. India has strengths in IT and biotechnology,whereas Russia is strong in material sciences, silicon production, space and nuclear technologies and we could offer innovativetechnologicalsolutionstoeachotherintheseareas.

Ourtwocountriesalsohavealonganddistinguishedrecordofcooperationon spaceissues,includingthelaunchofIndiasfirstsatelliteAryabhatain1975andthe travelintospacebyRakeshSharmain1984,whichcontinuesapace. Turningtotradeandeconomicissues,our annualtradeispresentlyamodest US$9.5billionanddiversifyingitscommoditybaskettradeisoneofthekeysto boostingit.Thereisconsiderableuntappedpotentialandmuchworktobedonein promotingtrade.Ourcountriesarecomprehensivelyengagingtodiversifyourtrade basket under the IndiaRussia InterGovernmental Commission, which is the most extensive such body that India has with any country. Russias modernization programmeandrecentWTOmembershipopenupnewopportunities.SectorslikeIT, pharmaceuticalsandbiotechnology,coal,diamonds,steel,fertilizers,foodprocessing, autoparts,constructionandengineeringservices,financialservices,telemedicineand hydrocarbons,havegoodpotential. Indian investments in Russia are presently estimated at US$ 6.5 billion, predominantlyintheenergysector,butalsoinmining,engineeringproducts,agro productsandpharmaceuticals.RussianinvestmentsintoIndiahavebeenprimarilyin telecommunications, besides the automobile, energy and mining sectors. We are seekingtoenhancebilateralinvestmentinbothdirectionsandseveralnewprojectsare inthepipeline. Indiaisemergingasoneoftheleadingworldeconomiesandthereisafresh dynamismamongstourpeopleandconfidenceinourcapabilities.Equally,growthis underway in Russia, which has launched an ambitious economic modernization program.Indiarepresentsaneconomyofwelloverabillionconsumers,ayoungand skilledworkforce,arapidlytransformingeconomythatrequiresmassiveinvestments inalmostallsectors,particularlyinfrastructure.Russiaisaneconomyrichlyendowed withnaturalresourcesandpossessingatalentedworkforcecapableofgenerating advanced technologies in a variety of sectors. Both have dynamic and innovative entrepreneursandourcomplementaritiesareevident. Indiacanbeareliable,long termpartnerinRussiasmodernizationasourcompanieshavethecapacitytoinvest, substantialinnovationcapabilities,andthetechnologicaledgeinmanysectors.Thus, it can be a technology source for Russia in IT, pharmaceuticals and hydrocarbon processingandadependablepartnerinlongtermarrangementsconcerningdiamond processing,fertilizers,andhydrocarbons.

Overall,greaterexposureisneededtoeachotherslatestachievements,sothat wearenotboundbyoldmindsetsandstereotypeswhileseekingtoopennewvistasfor bilateralcooperation.Wemustpromotegreaterawarenessofinvestmentopportunities in both countries and highlight each others growing capabilities and latest achievements. Tourism enhances peopletopeople contacts, strengthening the roots of our partnershipandnurturingitforthefuture.Toenhancebusinessandtouristflowsfrom RussiatoIndia,wemadechangeslastJunethatreflectamoreliberalvisaregimefor Russians, leading to a boom in Russian tourist arrivals in India. This has been reciprocatedbytheRussianside. ThesuccessoftheFestivalofIndiaintheUSSRheldin1988ledtotheopening in1989oftheJawaharlalNehruCulturalCentreattheEmbassyofIndia,Moscow.It focusesonteachingIndiandance,Indianmusic,yogaandHindi.Overtheyearsithas developedlinkswithseveralRussianinstitutions,suchastheInstituteofPhilosophy, Moscow,whichhasaMahatmaGandhiChaironIndianPhilosophy,theInstituteof OrientalStudies,Moscow,theInstituteofAsianandAfricanStudiesofMoscowState University,theSchoolofInternationalRelationsofSt.PetersburgUniversity,Kazan StateUniversity,andtheFarEasternFederalUniversityatVladivostok. With India transforming rapidly, the enhanced availability in Russia of assessmentsandperspectivesonrecentdevelopmentsinIndiawouldbeverytimely. Accordingly,an ICCR Chairon Contemporary Indian Studies has recently started functioningattheRussianStateUniversityfortheHumanities,Moscow. Todayover1,500RussianscholarsandstudentsarestudyingHindiinRussia, whilesignificantnumbersarepursuingthestudyofotherIndianlanguages,suchas Bengali,Tamil,andTelugu.MoreIndian literature,ancient andmodern,hasbeen translatedintotheRussianlanguage,thananyotherforeignlanguage.Inthiscontext, itisworthrememberingIndologistandlinguistTatyanaElizarenkova,hailingfromSt. Petersburg,whoearnedaninternationalreputationforherstudyandtranslationofthe Vedas, as also Academician Yevgeniy Petrovich Chelyshev, whos volume Indian Literature:YesterdayandTodaypublishedin1989,wasthefirsteffortatcreatingan integratedhistoryofIndianliterature.

TheamazinglyrichIndologicaltradition,nurturedbytheInstituteofOriental Studiesandotherinstitutions,continuestoflourishinpresentdayRussia,especiallyin St.PetersburgandMoscow.SeveralcontemporaryRussianIndologistshaveearned scholarlydistinctionandbeenawardedsomeofIndiashighestcivilianhonours,such asPadmaBhushanandPadmaShri. Another important dimension of our bilateral interaction is our constantly growingcooperationatmultilateralfora.AsourrecentexperiencesintheG20and cooperationontheUNSecurityCouncilhaveshown,ourabilitytoshapeoutcomes multipliesmanifoldwhenweworktogether.Ourcooperationatmultilateralforaisnot justanotherfacetofourfriendship,butisemergingasonemoreimportantpillarof ourstrategicpartnership. India and Russia are founding members of BRICS, whose five member countries are increasingly becoming the main drivers of global economic growth. Indias aspirations for BRICS envisage that our countries join hands to secure a peacefulandorderlytransformationoftheworldtobetterreflectcontemporaryand emerging global realities. This is important not just in the realm of political and securitygovernancestructures,suchastheUNSecurityCouncil,butappliesequally toreformsneededinglobalfinancial,monetaryandtradesystems. Wearealsoworkingincreasinglycloselytotackleterrorism,extremismand intolerance,andsuchnewthreatstoourlargeanddiversesocietiesasorganizedcrime, drugtraffickingandpiracy. Theyear2011witnessedintensedialogueandengagementbetweenIndiaand Russia.Inthelastsixmonthsof2011,visitstoRussiafromIndiawereundertakenby ourMinistersofHomeAffairs,Tourism,Defence,Power,Commerce,Steel,External Affairs,Shipping,andourNationalSecurityAdvisor.Thepinnacleoftheseexchanges in2011wastheverysuccessfulvisittotheRussianFederationinmidDecemberby our Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, which affirmed the unprecedented goodwillandtrustbetweenus.Morerecently,President Dmitry Medvedevvisited IndiainlateMarch2012fortheBRICSSummit.Wenowlookforwardtowelcoming PresidentelectVladimirPutintoIndiainthesecondhalfof2012forthetraditional, annualIndiaRussiaSummit,aswetakeforwardourspecialandprivilegedstrategic partnershiptoaqualitativelynewlevel.

Ontheculturalfront,lastyearweorganizedaFestivalofIndianCulturein RussiainSeptemberandhostedseveralculturaleventsandacademicconferencesto celebrate Rabindranath Tagores 150th birth anniversary. We have planned an extensive calendar of academic and cultural activities across Russia for 2012, includinginSt.Petersburg,tocommemorate65yearsofIndiaRussiadiplomaticties. Indian cinema legends like Raj Kapoor remain household names and evoke nostalgiaacrossRussia,whilethereisalsoconsiderableinterestinthenewgeneration of Indian actors and actresses. Seeking to invigorate interest in Indian cinema in Russia,aFestivalofModernIndianCinemaandCultureisbeinghostedinsixRussian cities.ItwasinauguratedinMoscowon13April2012byourMinisterofExternal AffairsMr.S.M.KrishnaandopenedyesterdayinSt.Petersburg.Ihopeyouwillsee someofthefifteennewIndianfilmsbeingscreenedandparticipateinotherIndian cultural events being hosted in St. Petersburg as part of the Festival. In turn, a FestivalofRussiainIndiawillbeheldinthesecondhalfof2012. Itissatisfyingthat otheraspectsofIndiancivilization,suchasIndiandance, Indianmusic, yoga, and ayurveda, arealsoverywellappreciatedacrossRussiaand thatinterestinthemisgrowing.Thishasaddedtothecommunionofourculturesand enhancedtheculturaldialoguebetweenourcountries. Overall,ourlongtraditionofwarmandclosetieshascontinuedtoexpand, despitetumultuouschangestakingplaceintheworld.Afundamentalaspectofthe extraordinary goodwill between us and the stability of IndoRussian ties is the exemplary sensitivity we have shown to each others concerns, including security concerns.ItisparticularlyrevealingthatneitherIndianorRussiaperceivesathreat fromthestrengthoftheother;instead,eachseesbenefitforitselfintheincreased politicalandeconomicstrengthoftheother.Thereisalsounanimity,cuttingacross partylinesinbothIndiaandRussia,forcloseandfriendlyrelationswitheachother. Our relationship serves as an anchor of peace and stability as the world undergoesaprofoundtransformation.Inrecentyears,newchallengesandthreatshave emerged,makingitimperativethatweintensifyourdialogueandcooperationeven further.Wecantogetherhelpshapeglobalresponsestochangesunderway. Ourties havegainedenormous variety and depth overthedecades and are poisedforfurthergrowthanddiversificationduring2012.Itisimmenselysatisfying

thatgoodwill,mutualrespectandtrustexistsnotmerelybetweenourgovernmentsor politicalleaders,butespeciallyatthepeopletopeoplelevel.Thisconstitutesthetrue bedrockofourspecialandprivilegedstrategicpartnership. Finally,mywarmestfelicitationstoallofyouaswecelebratesixtyfiveyearsof IndiaRussiadiplomaticrelations.Ilookforwardtorespondingtoyourquestions.

Thankyou. ****