Former envoys hail Putin's remark for PM Modi, call it a 'proud moment for Indian diplomacy'

By Ayushi Agarwal
New Delhi [India], October 28 : Hailing Russian President Vladimir Putin's remarks where he praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for being a "true patriot" and leading India on a progressive path, Former envoys here in New Delhi said this is a 'proud moment for Indian Diplomacy.'
"President Putin at the Global Valdai conference praised Prime Minister Modi's leadership of India for its development through Make in India and conduct of an independent foreign policy was extremely well received in the conference. He compared PM Modi to an icebreaker that proceeds steadily despite any difficulties. He emphasized that India and Russia do not have any differences - even now - a comment that is of relevance during the Ukraine conflict. On PM Modi's request to Putin, Russia had also given India 7 times more fertilizers than in the past. This was a proud moment for India- a mark of high international recognition of PM Modi's contribution to making India a developed economy and leading global power", said Ventakesh Varma, Former Indian Ambassador to Russia who was present at the Moscow Conference yesterday.
"There was no such praise to any other leader in these glowing terms. It also showed that India - Russia strategic partnership is not only solid but is getting ever stronger due to the excellent personal rapport between PM Modi and President Putin", he added.
Addressing the Valdai Club conference in Moscow, Putin said, "PM Modi is a great patriot who is able to pursue an independent foreign policy despite any attempts to do some detente or limit something.".
"I am sure India has a great future and an increasing role in global affairs," he added.
While the other former envoy highlighted the relationship between the two countries, he also stressed India's foreign policy and how India points out politely to something that it is not comfortable with.
"President Putin only stated the factual position. We have a long-standing relationship with Russia which has been a good friend. PM Modi and President Putin enjoy a good relationship. We have been supportive of each other and at the same time, we are close friends. We are strategic partners. So, when he talks of independent foreign policy, that is very true. Independence also means that when even a close friend does something that we are not comfortable with, we gently and politely point it out. That is what we have always done and that is what we are doing now", said Ambassador Vishnu Prakash, Former Senior Diplomat and Former Spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs.
Further highlighting India's position in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine crisis, another Envoy calls it 'India's balanced position' and stated how Russia has come to India's assistance.
"India's relations with Russia from a long time back have been so perfect. There have been occasions when there are disagreements, some minor issues may come up about the supply of arms, etc to Pakistan. But basically, there is a perfect understanding. I'm not going to use any jargon but we have a perfect understanding. Russia has come to our assistance at very crucial moments both in terms of politics and also on the ground. So, India's position there for on the current crisis in Ukraine is very balanced. So, what we do is on based on principle, and the principle is that there should be no loss of life, they should be no war, and there should be no tension between two neighboring countries. So, our first effort, therefore, is to ensure and make an appeal to both the nations, both the parties that they should not resort to this kind of extreme methods and rather agree for a discussion, face-to-face discussion", said VB Soni, Former Senior Diplomat.
In his annual address to the Valdai Discussion Club in Moscow, The Russian president also called India's transformation from a British colony to a modern state "tremendous," adding that the country's 1.5 billion people and visible development results deserve everyone's respect and admiration. He also underlined India-Russia ties, referring to it as a special relationship and how the two countries have backed each other for decades and continue to do so.