Great music, good food aplenty, guests from different walks of life and the underlying bonhomie between our two countries made for a memorable Russia Day

Classical music that was zesty and foot- tapping wafted through the air at the Russian Embassy as it geared up to celebrate Russia Day. The occasion commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of State Sovereignty of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (RSFSR) on June 12, 1990. Given the long-standing relationship that India shares with the country, the embassy in Chanakyapuri was abuzz with guests from all walks of life.

Foreign Secretary V K Gokhale was the chief guest while Najma Heptulla, Governor of Manipur, was the guest of honour. Heptulla was also presented with the Russian State award called the Order of Friendship.

The food at the do was catered by the LaLit Group of Hotels. The highlight of the evening was the ensemble, STRADIVALENKI, which comprised four virtuoso violin, accordion, piano and double-bass players and played numbers that had the guests shaking their heads.

Nikolay Kudashev, Ambassador of Russia to India, while addressing the guests, reiterated that Russia highly valued and respected India’s rich history, culture and traditions. “We are very proud to note that one of the first major international initiatives taken by new Russia was the signing of the Treaty on Friendship and Cooperation with India on January 28, 1993 which reaffirmed the continuity of our unique relationship,” he said. He further elaborated that the Declaration of Strategic Partnership of 2000 laid the foundation of the modern relationship, which since 2010 has enjoyed the status of Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership that is immune to any changes in domestic affairs or vagaries.

He went on to add, “In 2018 our leaders, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, met twice for bilateral summits both informal and the full-fledged one and several times on the sidelines of various international fora.”

The ambassador also highlighted that Russia and India are time-tested partners in the military and military-technical spheres and recent years have seen a host of deals being signed for production of military equipment under the Make in India programme. “Economic cooperation is also one of the top priorities of our relations. The 2018 October summit in New Delhi resulted in a new series of important agreements and MoUs, introducing a new platform for aspiring entrepreneurs — Russia-India Business Summit, which showed eagerness and ability of our companies to enhance trade, economic and investment partnership.”

He was pleased to note that the relationship was not confined to the two governments as “it is gratifying and inspiring that people-to-people contacts and mutual affinity are the key drivers of the Russian-Indian friendship giving new impetus to the ever-expanding areas of our cooperation. This is the reason why we proudly declare that the amity between Russia and India has become a deep-rooted popular tradition in both countries.”

The evening ended on a high note for the guests and the delegates.

Writer & Courtesy: The Pioneer

Great music, good food aplenty, guests from different walks of life and the underlying bonhomie between our two countries made for a memorable Russia Day

Classical music that was zesty and foot- tapping wafted through the air at the Russian Embassy as it geared up to celebrate Russia Day. The occasion commemorates the adoption of the Declaration of State Sovereignty of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic (RSFSR) on June 12, 1990. Given the long-standing relationship that India shares with the country, the embassy in Chanakyapuri was abuzz with guests from all walks of life.

Foreign Secretary V K Gokhale was the chief guest while Najma Heptulla, Governor of Manipur, was the guest of honour. Heptulla was also presented with the Russian State award called the Order of Friendship.

The food at the do was catered by the LaLit Group of Hotels. The highlight of the evening was the ensemble, STRADIVALENKI, which comprised four virtuoso violin, accordion, piano and double-bass players and played numbers that had the guests shaking their heads.

Nikolay Kudashev, Ambassador of Russia to India, while addressing the guests, reiterated that Russia highly valued and respected India’s rich history, culture and traditions. “We are very proud to note that one of the first major international initiatives taken by new Russia was the signing of the Treaty on Friendship and Cooperation with India on January 28, 1993 which reaffirmed the continuity of our unique relationship,” he said. He further elaborated that the Declaration of Strategic Partnership of 2000 laid the foundation of the modern relationship, which since 2010 has enjoyed the status of Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership that is immune to any changes in domestic affairs or vagaries.

He went on to add, “In 2018 our leaders, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, met twice for bilateral summits both informal and the full-fledged one and several times on the sidelines of various international fora.”

The ambassador also highlighted that Russia and India are time-tested partners in the military and military-technical spheres and recent years have seen a host of deals being signed for production of military equipment under the Make in India programme. “Economic cooperation is also one of the top priorities of our relations. The 2018 October summit in New Delhi resulted in a new series of important agreements and MoUs, introducing a new platform for aspiring entrepreneurs — Russia-India Business Summit, which showed eagerness and ability of our companies to enhance trade, economic and investment partnership.”

He was pleased to note that the relationship was not confined to the two governments as “it is gratifying and inspiring that people-to-people contacts and mutual affinity are the key drivers of the Russian-Indian friendship giving new impetus to the ever-expanding areas of our cooperation. This is the reason why we proudly declare that the amity between Russia and India has become a deep-rooted popular tradition in both countries.”

The evening ended on a high note for the guests and the delegates.

Writer & Courtesy: The Pioneer