Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday. The conversation took place via telephone. The two leaders discussed a range of issues of bilateral cooperation and also reviewed their progress.

According to the Prime Minister's Office, the two also discussed regional and global issues of mutual concern, including the recently concluded BRICS summit in Johannesburg. President Putin expressed his inability to attend the G20 Summit on 9-10 September 2023 in New Delhi. He said that Russia would be represented by the Foreign Minister of the Russian Federation, Sergei Lavrov.

Respecting Russia's decision, the Prime Minister thanked President Putin for Russia's continued support for all initiatives under India's G20 Chairmanship. According to the PMO, both the leaders agreed to remain in touch.

Putin once again congratulated PM Narendra Modi for the successful landing of Chandrayaan-3 on the South Pole of the Moon. The Kremlin said they expressed their desire to further develop bilateral cooperation in space exploration. Both the countries are moving forward with a very positive attitude regarding this.

Earlier, when Russian Ambassador to India Denis Alipov was asked whether the Russian President would attend the G20 summit in Delhi? So he had said that it is not my prerogative to make any announcement or statement regarding the program of the President. I would suggest waiting for an official announcement by the President's Office regarding his participation in the G20 Summit.

Recently, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has also confirmed that Russian President Putin is not planning a visit to India for the G20 summit in September. He has a busy schedule. Right now his main focus is on a 'special military operation' in Ukraine. Let us tell you that the fierce war between Russia and Ukraine is going on since 24 February 2022.