CONGRESS SANDESH COMPLETES ITS SEVEN YEAR

Putin, Sonia Gandhi For BringingPeople CloserCP’s Russia VisitMOSCOW: The UPA Chairperson, Smt. Sonia Gandhi paid a fourdayvisit to Russia from 13 June on personal invitation of RussianPresident, Shri Vladimir Putin. In Moscow airport she wasaccorded a warm welcome.Deputy Foreign Minister, Shri Alexander Saltanov and DeputyRailway Minister, Shri Vladimir Yakunin gave her a red-carpetreception at the VVIP Vnukovo-2 airport. External Affairs Minister,Shri K. Natwar Singh accompanied her.In Moscow, she interacted with Russian Prime Minister, ShriMikhail Fradkov and addressed function at the elite “Centre ofNational Glory of Russia.” India’s Ambassador to Russia, ShriKanwal Sibal described the visit as “an exceptional gesture offriendship on the part of President, Shri Putin that reflects thehigh importance both sides attach to their relations.” The levelof reception is the highest Smt. Gandhi has been given abroad.On 13 June, Smt. Gandhi paid a visit to a place in Vladimir Region,east of Moscow where her father had been kept as PoW duringWorld War II.On 15 th June, Smt. Gandhi and Shri Putin held a meeting attendedby the External affairs Minister, Shri K. Natwar Singh. During themeeting, Smt. Sonia Gandhi and Russian President, Shri VladimirPutin agreed to put greater emphasis on cultural exchangesbetween India and Russia to promote people-to-people contactand closer relations between the two societies.Welcoming Smt. Gandhi in the presidential KonstantinovskyPalace outside St. Petersburg, Shri Putin proposed holding a “Yearof Russia” in India in 2008 and a “Year of India” in Russia in2009. The numerous activities that would form part of thefestivals would help in bringing the people of the two nationstogether and further strengthen the relations, he said.Smt. Gandhi hailed the festival ideas as “wonderful,” adding: “Iwill personally involve myself in these activities.” She said thatalong with high-level official interaction between India and Russia,people-to-people contacts were very important as they helpeddevelop relations between civil societies of the two countries.Smt. Gandhi said the meeting with Shri Putin was the “highlight”of her visit to Russia, a first P-5 nation she is visiting after beingelected the UPA Chairperson. Shri Putin described Indo-Russianrelations as “developing in the best way possible” and noted thepacked political agenda between the two countries.The two leaders held discussion on many issues of mutualconcern, a statement from Smt. Gandhi said after the talks.The statement noted that India and Russia saw eye-to-eyeon the United Nations reforms and on making the SecurityCouncil more representative and reflective of contemporaryrealities.“As victims of terrorism, both India and Russia accept theneed to combat it without any compromise,” the statementsaid. “The need to control the proliferation of weapons ofmass destruction is manifest. The importance of the effectivegovernance of globalisation so that it delivers benefits to thepoor and the deprived is shared by both governments.” Smt.Gandhi hailed relations between India and Russia as “the only␣␣example in the post- World War II history of two major nationsmaintaining close and unbroken cooperation and friendshipover decades.”While noting that the cooperation in defence was traditionallystrong, she said the two Governments were exploring theopportunities in new sectors, such as energy and informationtechnologies. She supported Prime Minister, Dr. ManmohanSingh’s proposal to set up an Indo-Russian study group toexplore potentialities in bilateral cooperation.Smt. Gandhi said she was “taken aback” by the beauty ofRussian orthodox churches in Vladimir which she is visitingfor the first time. She said she wished her children couldcome with her. Even though they had been twice to thecountry, it has changed so much she was sure that they wouldwant to come again. Shri Putin warmly invited Smt. Gandhi’schildren and their families to visit Russia. Diplomatic sourcesdescribed the meeting as most cordial and fruitful.After lunch, Shri Putin in a gesture of exception, warmth andrespect took Smt. Gandhi on a boat trip to the Peterhoff, anarchitectural jewel of St. Petersburg famous for its imperialsummer palaces. There he personally conducted a guidedtour of historical gardens for her. ❖8Congress SandeshJuly, 2005