President of Russia Dmitry Medvedev: Ladies and gentlemen, I want to start by welcoming to Moscow our guests and friends – Prime Minister of India Dr Manmohan Singh and the entire Indian delegation.
As has become the tradition, our meetings are friendly events where a spirit of mutual trust prevails. This was the third time the Prime Minister and I have met this year. Our meetings are not just exchanges of views on the current situation in the global economy and international affairs, but are intensive discussions on a wide range of subjects on which we share our opinions and, most importantly, move ahead. This was the case with this latest meeting too.
The joint declaration reflects the main results of our talks. We think the declaration fully reflects our approaches and makes the very important point that we are genuinely committed to doing all we can to strengthen our strategic partnership. We just signed some important intergovernmental and inter-ministerial agreements that will expand our cooperation.
The level of trust and partnership that we have built up between our countries is bearing practical fruit now in this period of economic crisis. Our bilateral trade increased by almost 7.5 percent over the first nine months of this year and already exceeds $5 billion.
But at the same time, we agree that there is still much potential in our relations to develop. Next year we plan to take our bilateral trade to a figure of $10 billion. I think that given our economies’ and our markets’ potential this is not the limit. I think we should step up contacts between our business communities, facilitate implementation of new business initiatives and business projects and set our sights on even higher figures, figures that really match the level of our partnership and that would be comparable to our trade with a number of our neighbours and other countries.
Our economic cooperation covers a broad range of strategic sectors: space, telecommunications, machine-building, the defence industry, finance, pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, and energy, including nuclear energy. We just initialled a very important agreement on nuclear energy cooperation for the coming years. We plan to continue developing our cooperation in this very promising field.
We also agreed to focus on making the Russian-Indian Intergovernmental Commission work more effectively and make full use of its potential. Consultations took place in India recently on this subject. We also step up the work of the Commission on Military Technical Cooperation.
Discussions on trade and economic matters will continue at the meetings the Prime Minister has scheduled for later today, including what I think is a very useful meeting with the council of CEOs of companies that brings together representatives of Russian and Indian big business. I think this is a useful meeting because these kinds of contacts help us to make progress in the most promising areas.
I think that over these last decades, and in earlier times too, a very important element in our relations – relations of friends and partners – has been not only economic ties but our contacts in the humanitarian sphere. The Prime Minister’s visit comes at the end of an eventful year that was the Year of India in the Russian Federation.
This was a very wide-ranging programme of events that offered unique opportunities to exchange cultural projects, encouraged economic and science and technology contacts, and helped to deepen ties between our two countries’ young people, which we think is the guarantee for friendship and understanding for the years ahead.
During our first meeting yesterday evening outside Moscow we discussed the international situation in detail. I can say that we have similar positions on the most important international issues. Of course, we are concerned about the biggest threats to global security. One of these threats is terrorism. Our countries advocate swift adoption of a comprehensive convention on international terrorism.
The Prime Minister and I discussed the situation in Afghanistan, the outcome of that country’s election, the need to strengthen its statehood and political institutions, and the spill-over effect that the events taking place in Afghanistan and Pakistan have on the situation in each of these countries. We discussed a number of other important and complex issues too, such as Iran and a number of others.
We paid a lot of attention to cooperation with groups in which we already have experience working together such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation, as well as cooperation in the BRIC group and trilateral cooperation between Russia, China and India. We think these groups and formats are needed now more than ever in order to make our world more balanced and predictable, and enable us to better prepare for difficulties we could face in the future. No matter how hard we work through groups such as the G20, for example, no matter what the efforts we make to resolve today’s economic problems, no one can guarantee against future problems, and building a new financial security architecture for the world depends on how closely we cooperate now.
I would like to thank sincerely the Prime Minister for these open, meaningful and friendly talks. I am sure that they will help us to strengthen our mutually beneficial cooperation. Our strategic partnership will continue to develop and we will see it continue to bear fruit – at the end of this year, and next year too – and we therefore always welcome these kinds of contacts. Once again, I wish you, Mr Prime Minister, and the Indian delegation welcome to our country.
Thank you for your attention.
Prime Minister of India Manmohan Singh: Your Excellency, Mr Medvedev, distinguished ministers of the Russian Federation and members of the Russian delegation, ladies and gentlemen of the media,
I would like to begin by conveying to the government and people of Russia the deepest condolences on behalf of the government and the people of India on the most tragic incident which took place in Perm a few days ago, and to join them in their mourning today. Our thoughts are with the friends and families of the bereaved persons.
I thank His Excellency, President Medvedev, and the people of Russia for the warm hospitality extended to me and to members of my delegation.
This is my second visit to Russia in a short period of six months, and I’m truly delighted to be back again in the friendly country of Russia.
Ladies and gentlemen, relations between India and Russia are characterised by deep mutual trust and confidence. They are based on shared interests and common perceptions on global issues. Russia is a major global power – a factor of peace and stability in the international system. India accords the highest priority to its relations with Russia. This is a relationship that stands on its own footing and is not influenced by our relations with any other countries.
I am most satisfied with our discussions today – multifaceted, multidimensional. My discussions with the President at the dinner were most rewarding.
I conveyed to President Medvedev the special importance we attach to strengthening the economic dimensions of our relations. We expect the India-Russia CEOs’ Council to play a much bigger role in realising this objective.
I will be meeting the members of the Council later today, together with Prime Minister Putin. We have decided to set a trade target of $20 billion to be reached by 2015. We have identified the areas of energy, information technology and communications, and pharmaceuticals as the new area for cooperation. We welcome greater Russian participation in the expansion of our nuclear energy programme.
The successful conclusion of negotiations on the intergovernmental agreement on cooperation in the peaceful uses of atomic energy is a major step forward in strengthening our cooperation – our existing cooperation – in this field. I reiterated to President Medvedev our keen interest to similarly expand our cooperation in the hydrocarbon sector. Given India’s energy needs and the world-class capabilities of Indian companies in the oil and gas sector, this is an area of untapped potential. I was most encouraged by the President’s positive response to taking further concrete steps in this direction.
The agreements that we have signed in the field of defence cooperation in particular, and the program for military and technical cooperation for the period of 2011 to 2020 will provide the basis for a more intensive and broad-based cooperation in this vast area.
We are grateful for the support given by the government of Russia, by holding the Year of India in Russia. We would like to build upon this by focusing on greater exchanges between our youth, institutions of higher learning, parliamentarians, business leaders, media, scientists, and researchers, and the related people-to-people contact.
We also discussed regional issues, including the situation in Afghanistan. Both India and Russia have an interest in a stable, prosperous, and moderate Afghanistan, and we have agreed to regularly consult each other in this important area. We’ve also agreed to enhance our cooperation to meet the grave challenges of terrorism and religious extremism that emanate from our region and threaten both of our societies.
We reviewed our collaboration in the United Nations and multilateral forums like the G20. India and Russia can play a significant role in ensuring that the process of global economic recovery is sustained, balanced, and more inclusive.
We have agreed to work toward a successful and comprehensive outcome at the climate change conference in Copenhagen. I have invited His Excellency, President Medvedev, for the next annual summit in Delhi in the year 2010. We look forward to the visit of Prime Minister Putin next year. These high-level exchanges are a defining characteristic of the relations between our two countries, and they reflect the strong political commitment on both sides, to continue to strengthen our strategic partnership.
Thank you.
Question: Mr President of the Russian Federation and Mr Prime Minister of India, if we look at the military technical cooperation agreement signed today it is clear that in this area relations are doing well indeed. The agreements signed today are very concrete in nature and explain a lot.
On the subject of nuclear energy cooperation, can you tell us if we can expect any specific projects anytime soon in this area? And is there any chance that cooperation in a sector such as pharmaceuticals, say, could even start to come close to the level we have in military technical cooperation? What needs to be done for this to happen?
Dmitry Medvedev: Let me begin, and the Prime Minister will continue if he wishes.
We cooperate in a wide range of areas. As well as the military technical sector, which you mentioned, we also have many projects in the energy sector. A substantial number of our projects are in the nuclear energy sector. We just initialled an agreement in this area opening up the road towards greater cooperation in the future. We have good experience on the Kudankulam nuclear power project, and we are looking now at the possibility of working at another site too.
I think agreements such as the one the heads of our nuclear energy agencies initialled today create opportunities for building up our cooperation over the coming years. Given the size of the Indian market, the possibilities we can offer in the nuclear energy sector, our shared concern about climate issues and the need to develop alternative energy sources, nuclear cooperation between Russia and India has a very bright future in my opinion. We talked about this yesterday and again today. We are happy with our cooperation in this area, and I am sure that there will be many interesting projects ahead.
As for the pharmaceuticals sector, just ten minutes before the agreements’ signing and the press conference, while the delegations were getting seated, I discussed precisely this topic with the Prime Minister. We noted that this is a growing market. Russia’s pharmaceuticals market is growing and Indian companies are quite well represented here and have established brands. I told the Prime Minister that we have made developing the pharmaceuticals industry a state priority under the Russian President’s personal coordination, and in this context I think that joint business in this sector has very good prospects indeed. We are therefore ready to discuss projects and establish new companies to manufacture medicines.
Manmohan Singh: Ladies and gentlemen, I entirely endorse what President Medvedev has said. We are very satisfied with the development of nuclear power cooperation.
Already, Kudankulam is a symbol of expanding Indian-Russian cooperation in civil nuclear energy. Four more units will come up there. In addition, we have identified an additional site in the state of West Bengal, and today, we have signed an agreement which broadens the reach of our cooperation beyond the supply of nuclear reactors to areas of research and development and a whole range of areas of nuclear energy.
And in the same way, the President and I had a very pleasant exchange, just a few minutes before we came into this room, regarding the vast potential that exists for the development of pharmaceutical cooperation between our two countries. Russia has a vast market. India has very well-known capabilities in the supply of generic drugs at low cost, and therefore, I see a very bright future, both in the area of nuclear cooperation, as well as pharmaceutical cooperation, in years to come.
Question: This question is for President Medvedev. After the resolution adopted at the G8 at L’Aquila – if that resolution makes progress, will Russia still be interested in supplying nuclear technology to India? And second, what was the nature of discussions to discourage the encouragement that terrorism receives from Pakistan?
Dmitry Medvedev: The Russian Federation is ready to discuss in the friendliest spirit all cooperation issues with our Indian partners, including cooperation in the nuclear energy sector. Our position has not changed on this matter.
As for the question of terrorism and control over nuclear technology in the world, including control over the situation in our neighbours, this is indeed a sensitive area. This was also something that we discussed yesterday. We want to ensure that nuclear technology around the world – technology for peaceful nuclear use — is under the strict control of the IAEA.
As for military nuclear technology, this is a separate issue that is regulated by special international conventions. To be honest, the Russian Federation does not want to see the ‘nuclear club’ expand, and wants all research in the nuclear field to be purely peaceful in nature. We therefore follow closely developments around us, in the neighbouring countries. In this respect, we are following very closely developments in our close neighbours.
We want the defence capabilities of a number of countries, including nuclear countries, to be under control, so that they cannot fall hostage to all sorts of radicals and be used to ignite large-scale conflicts or threaten their neighbours. In this sense, we seek contacts with everyone who shares this view on the need to establish control over these kinds of sensitive areas.
This concerns all countries, including Iran with its nuclear programme, and also the possibility of other countries making use of nuclear weapons. We follow this issue very closely, exchange information on it, and this was one of the subjects the Prime Minister and I discussed yesterday.
Question: You already mentioned the fight against terrorism. Russia and India have both been the victims of terrorism. It is enough, sadly, to recall last year’s terrorist attack in Mumbai, and the recent blast that derailed the Nevsky Express. Could you give us more details on Russia and India’s cooperation in fighting terrorism? Has this cooperation already yielded results, and if yes, could you tell us about them?
I have a second question too. Both countries play an active part in international organisations, in particular the BRIC Group. What significance do Russia and India place on their involvement in this group? This question is for both leaders.
Dmitry Medvedev: Anti-terrorist issues are certainly extremely important for our countries, which have both suffered from terrorism. As circumstances had it, I visited India last year only just after the terrorist attack in Mumbai, and we discussed those events and talked about what we and other countries can do, how the international community should react.
Of course, I expressed my condolences to our Indian friends over what happened. Unfortunately, life is such that this year has brought its share of tragedy too. A terrorist attack took place just recently, here in Russia, when terrorists laid explosives beneath a train travelling from Moscow to St Petersburg. This shows just how important cooperation in this area remains for our countries today.
What do we need to do? First, we need to strengthen the international base for anti-terrorist cooperation. Work on a comprehensive anti-terrorist convention is one of the main priorities for our cooperation with India.
Second, we need to provide each other with concrete assistance, that is, make use of the various counterterrorism technology and assistance through the intelligence community. We need to monitor very closely what takes place on our borders, which are troubled areas. Events in Afghanistan and Pakistan show how important it is for different countries to consolidate their positions in order to counter these threats.
We will definitely continue this kind of cooperation. We share the same view: terrorism is one of the undeniable scourges of this century, as it was of last, and we need to fight it using all possible means, from international conventions to targeted localised action by countries suffering the effects of terrorism.
As for our new cooperation forum, the BRIC Group, I think this is a promising forum, a promising summit that makes it possible to build up relations between fast-growing economies, of which the Indian and Russian economies are two examples.
When I discussed this subject with the Prime Minister yesterday we came to the common conclusion that we should build up cooperation within the BRIC Group and aim for tangible results so as to ensure that our meetings are not just discussions of the current international agenda or the consequences of the global crisis, but create new opportunities for helping our countries and, through expert consultations, help us to coordinate our economic policies. Our countries and our economies have a big influence on the overall situation in the world, and so I think that this would be a very useful thing. Overall, we consider these contacts extremely useful.
Manmohan Singh: Ladies and gentlemen, again, it’s my privilege to say that I entirely endorse what President Medvedev has just now mentioned. That is an indication of how similar are our views when it comes to global, regional, and related issues.
On counter-terrorism, our cooperation can extend to cooperation at the international level. President Medvedev has mentioned the comprehensive convention on counter-terrorism that happens to be one such area. Also, we can share intelligence and information gathering, and also use our instrumentalities to pressurise countries which give shelter or encouragement to terrorist activities.
Similarly, with regard to BRIC, this is a new grouping which has immense potential of promoting mutually beneficial cooperation among the emerging economies of the world, and therefore, as the world becomes more and more multipolar, the importance of groupings like BRIC can only increase.
This is a forum which provides important opportunities for us to exchange view on our economic policies, how we can learn from each others’ experiences, how we can better coordinate our economic policies, and also, in the process, devise strategies to influence the consideration of economic and other policies in the wider forums such as the Group of 20.
Question: My question is addressed to both the Prime Minister and the President. Is it a concern for both India and Russia to accelerate the economic dimension of the relationship, and if yes, are there any concrete takeaways or any sectors where India has expressed interest in participation, or Russia expressed interest in the participation of Indian companies in their own country?
Manmohan Singh: Pharmaceuticals is an area which was mentioned by President Medvedev. I also mentioned this area. Rough diamonds is another area. And of course, there are the traditional commodities like tea and other commodities which have been part of the traditional basket of goods and services. But there are new possibilities, like information and communication technologies, and also in the area of telecommunications, Russia is emerging as a major investor in India.
Dmitry Medvedev: In this situation I cannot choose but agree in turn with Mr Prime Minister. As far as our priorities are concerned, all of the issues we have been discussing indeed represent our priorities.
We have laid good groundwork for projects addressing all the issues for which we just signed documents: military technical cooperation, energy, including nuclear energy, as well as cooperation in finance and the banking sector, which in my view is very relevant today. We need to create joint financial instruments that will help resolve these issues, using a variety of approaches. This, by the way, is also helpful in addressing current problems within the global financial system.
Naturally, we must look both at what has already been done and what we should do in the future. In addition to energy issues and cooperation in diamond mining and processing, as mentioned by Mr Prime Minister, there is an area which, in my view, is developing quite well in India. This is an area in which we are interested, and where we have certain opportunities: I am referring to IT technologies. I believe that if we discuss this field, a great deal can be accomplished, from high technologies in information communications to applying modern technologies in various traditional areas, including energy, which is a field that needs to change. We must create an image for the energy sector of the 21st century, and that simply cannot be done without modern technologies. That is why our priorities are represented by the work we have been doing, but we will be adding new ones, as well.