Russian President Putin praises PM Modi during 'private engagement'

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday night welcomed Prime Minister Narendra Modi at his official residence at NovoOgaryovo for a private engagement during which he praised the visiting Indian leader for the work he has done for the countrys progressI would like to congratulate you on your reelection as prime minister I think this is not an accident but the result of your work over many years Putin told Modi as they held an informal meeting in a residence outside MoscowYou have your own ideas You are a very energetic person able to achieve results in the interests of India and the Indian people Putin said The result is obvious India firmly ranks as the worlds thirdlargest economy Putin was quoted as saying by the staterun Tass news agencyPutin said Prime Minister Modi has devoted his entire life to serving his people and they can feel it As the two heads of state held an informal meeting over a cup of tea at the official residence outside Moscow Modi recollected the recent elections in his country saying that the people of India gave him a chance to serve the MotherlandYou have devoted your entire life to serving the Indian people and they can feel it Putin replied You are right I have only one goal It is the people and my country the prime minister said with a smile the Tass report said Later President Putin and Prime Minister Modi took a stroll around Putins residence in NovoOgaryovoThe Russian leader showed his Indian guest around the residence and gave him a drive in an electric car Most of the time they spoke via interpreters However when they left the car and were walking to the garden they had a brief teteatete conversation probably in English according to a separate Tass reportIn a post on X Prime Minister Modi expressed his gratitude to President Putin for hosting him at NovoOgaryovoLooking forward to our talks tomorrow as well which will surely go a long way in further cementing the bonds of friendship between India and Russia he saidEarlier the Ministry of External Affairs described the private event as a meeting of two close friends and trusted partnersPM narendramodi welcomed by President Vladimir Putin of Russia at his official residence at NovoOgaryovo for a private engagement it said sharing some photographs of the meetingIt is an occasion for the two leaders to cherish amp celebrate IndiaRussia friendship it saidIn his first trip since the start of Moscows invasion of Ukraine Modi on Monday travelled to Russia to hold summit talks with Putin on Tuesday a visit that is being seen as having a wider geopolitical context and signallingShortly after landing in Moscow Modi said he is looking forward to deepening bilateral partnership in futuristic areas and that stronger ties between India and Russia will greatly benefit our peopleIndia seeks to play a supportive role for a peaceful and stable region the prime minister said in his departure statementModi was received at the VnukovoII airport by Russias First Deputy Prime Minister Denis ManturovThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever