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Vajpayee's Russia visit will be a milestone: Putin

The forthcoming Russia visit of Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee would be a "milestone" in bilateral relations between the two countries, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Monday.

"We are due not only to check the course of executing the agreements achieved in October 2000, but also concentrate on looking for new long-term fields of further development of the Indo-Russian strategic partnership," Putin said at a Kremlin ceremony, in which credentials of ambassadors of eight countries, including those of the new Indian ambassador K Raghunath, were presented.

Talking to the media, Raghunath said, "Within the framework of our strategic partnership we have a very extensive and intensive agenda."

"On specific issues like combating international terrorism and problems of strategic stability, India and Russia have a permanent mechanism of dialogue," he said.

Raghunath expressed satisfaction over the fact that there was a perceptible improvement in economic cooperation and trade relations between the two countries, where once a "sense of dissatisfaction" was prevailing.

The ambassador identified science and technology, space research, peaceful use of nuclear energy and information technology as the core sectors of Indo-Russian economic cooperation.

He also expressed satisfaction at the ongoing defence cooperation between India and Russia.

PTI

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