A number of agreements are expected to be signed as Russian President Putin visits India which will take place even as the first batch of S-400 air defence system will be reaching India by the end of this year.

Russian President Vladimir Putin most likely will be visiting India in the first week of December with the expected date being December 6 for the annual summit between the two countries.

The Russian president will hold talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his one-day visit.

A number of agreements are expected to be signed during the visit. The visit will take place even as the first batch of the S-400 air defence system will be reaching India by the end of this year.

Putin had last visited India in 2018 for the annual summit. It was during that visit the contract for the S-400 missile system was signed between India and Russia.

The visit by the Russian president will be only his second foreign visit this year, the first one being to Geneva for the summit-level meeting with US President Joe Biden. He had joined the G20 summit in Italy virtually due to the COVID-19 crisis at home.

Last year the annual summit could not take place due to the COVID-19 crisis. Russia and Japan are the only two countries with which India has an annual summit-level mechanism that alternates between the respective countries. India and Russia have so far conducted twenty annual summit meetings.

In 2019, PM Modi had visited the far eastern Russian city of Vladivostok and was also the guest of honour for the fifth Eastern Economic forum. India had then announced a $1bn soft credit line to boost Indian business participation in Russia’s development, especially in the Far East.

The COVID-19 crisis naturally will be the main subject of discussion during the summit. Russia's Sputnik V vaccine is being produced in India and during the deadly second coronavirus wave, Moscow had sent humanitarian support to New Delhi.

Both countries are also engaged on Afghanistan with Russian National Security Advisor (Secretary of the Security Council) Nikolai P. Patrushev having visited New Delhi twice since the Taliban takeover of Kabul in August to discuss the situation in the country.

Defence forms the main pillar of the relationship with Russia being India's largest defence partner. The manufacture and co-production of four Project 1135.6 frigates, manufacture in India of assault rifle - AK-203 through 100 per cent indigenisation, additional supplies of Su-30MKI as well as the MiG-29s, additional supplies of the MANGO ammunition & VSHORAD systems are among the key projects.