St. Petersburg's Declaration presents roadmap for India-Russia ties in 21st century: Envoy

Ambassador of India to Russia Pankaj Saran has said that the St. Petersburg's Declaration signed by India and Russia in June this year presents a roadmap for the development of bilateral relations in the 21st century.

The joint declaration on boosting the cooperation in political, trade and economic, scientific and technical, as well as humanitarian areas was signed by India and Russia in June during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to St Petersburg to mark the 70 years of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

"If you take a long-term perspective, I think we should look at the St. Petersburg's Declaration as a roadmap for the development of our relations for the 21st century. It provides a very comprehensive blueprint," Sputnik quoted Ambassador Saran, as saying at a reception held here to celebrate the 71st anniversary of the independence of India on Tuesday.

Emphasizing that relations between both nations are in very good shape, Ambassador Saran specifically mentioned that both countries "can't be satisfied with what we have."

He listed out certain areas, including education, science and natural resources, where the cooperation between the countries can be expanded.

"I think education is another sphere where progress is good . but we need to bring universities together to continue this positive trend," Saran said.

Ambassador Saran said that Russia had vast natural resources, while India was one of the main consumers, so the two countries complemented each other well.

India and Russia have a strong strategic diplomatic, military, and economic relationship which has been built on five major elements which include politics, defence, civil nuclear energy, anti-terrorism cooperation, and space

"There's good case for identifying joint production, creating cycle of supply and demand, but this area still has huge potential," the ambassador said.

The ambassador added strengthening bilateral relations will contribute significantly on matters of shared national interest on various international platforms, such as BRICS, G20 and Shanghai Cooperation Organization where India has joined as a full member in June.