Russian President Vladimir Putin will undertake a three-day official visit to New Delhi from Dec. 3, during which the two sides are likely to sign accords on energy, defense and trade cooperation to take strategic relations with India to a higher level.

The visit will mark the fifth summit between the two sides since 2000 and the first since the Congress party-led government assumed office in May.

India feels that its time-tested strategic ties with Russia have stood the challenge of a changing global and regional environment.

Three days before Putin's visit to India, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov reached New Delhi to hold crucial discussions on military and technical cooperation, including working out an agreement to safeguard military technology being jointly developed. He will stay on for Putin's visit.

Indian officials preparing for Putin's visit said in New Delhi that the two sides are supposed to ink some 10 documents on their "shared perceptions and commitments" on bilateral, international and global issues.

The two countries were likely to sign an agreement that would prevent transfer of technology for futuristic weapons systems like "Brahmos" supersonic cruise missile to third nations.

The broader agreement will also cover mutual protection of intellectual property rights on joint weapons projects. Moscow has offered India an equity stake in the development of fifth generation fighter aircraft.

"The documents will include a joint statement and declaration on a pledge to combat terrorism jointly and the strengthening of the United Nations," one official said.

India and Russia are also likely to liberalize visa regimes as part of bilateral plans to increase annual trade above the current 2-billion-dollar level, other officials said.

Another important "result" was also likely to be reached concerning the conversion of the Rupee-Rouble debt into joint ventures, particularly in the energy sector. Valued at around 3 billion US dollars at current rates, India accumulated the debt during the heyday of its special trading ties with the Soviet Union.

The intention now is to utilize those funds, at the core of a dispute that has marred the development of bilateral economic ties for over a decade, to get the Russia-India economic partnership moving towards its potential. While Russia will not "waive" the amount, it has no objections to India utilizing the money for joint ventures, including nuclear power projects, inside India.

An agreement to jointly combat narco-terrorism is also on the cards. Both countries already have a joint working group and high level cooperation against terrorism, and both have sponsored comprehensive resolutions against terrorism at the United Nations.

"We support each other closely on this issue. But today there are new challenges, such as narco-terrorism and these need to be addressed," a senior diplomat said.

The next strategic frontier in bilateral relations, diplomats said, was cooperation in the energy sector, and Russia was "more than willing" to provide India vast amounts of liquefied natural gas, in tankers, at "very favourable rates" to meet its energy deficit.

Moscow and New Delhi share "excellent" bilateral relations politically and strategically, but until economic relations and trade levels are raised, the "full potential of the relationship remains incomplete," a diplomat said.

Source: Xinhua