Speech by Hon'ble President of India, Shrimati Pratibha Devisingh Patil, to the Indian Community at the Reception Hosted by Ambassador in Russia

I am happy to have the opportunity to meet with my compatriots in Moscow. Successful Indian communities can be found all over the world. Your presence here in Russia is yet another testimony to the great spirit of enterprise and capacity for hard work that exists amongst our people. We greatly value the contribution you are making to the development of our nation. The Government of India is committed to your welfare and interests and to ensure that these are protected abroad.

I can see that a large number of prominent Russian citizens are present here amidst us, including Madam Valentina Tereshkova, the first woman to go into space and who has visited India several times.I thank you all for your presence. All of you have been working in some capacity or the other with India-Russia collaborative projects. It is your work that has provided the building blocks to the India-Russia Strategic Partnership. I thank you all for your valuable work, and count on your continued support in the future.

I consider all of you to be, in your own right, representatives of India in Russia. The manner in which you have been working and the way you conduct yourselves, will build India's image in this country with which we share a special relationship and a strong partnership. I wish you all success for the future.

Today, I begin my State Visit to Russia at the invitation of His Excellency President Medvedev. The India-Russia relationship is a unique and time tested relationship. Our ties go back more than half a century. They have endured and strengthened despite the dramatic changes that have taken place in the world. Today, India and Russia enjoy close relations at the highest political levels. India and Russia share common views on a range of international issues and closely collaborate with each other on them. We have established a very broad and rich cooperative relationship, in areas that are vital for our national development. These range from areas such as defence to areas such as space, nuclear energy and Science and Technology.

India welcomes the important role that Russia plays in the international system. We consider a strong and prosperous Russia to be in our vital interest, and a factor of peace and stability both globally and regionally. As we expand our diplomatic engagements with other countries we are clear in our minds that this will never be at the cost of our time tested friendship. We greatly value our Strategic Partnership with Russia which remains one of our key foreign policy priorities.

When I look at our relationship, if there is an area where I feel we are lagging behind, it is the field of bilateral economic cooperation. For two economies with GDPs of our size, economic structures that only point towards strong complementarities, close political ties at all levels of government and a strong desire of the political leadership on both sides to foster closer ties, India-Russia bilateral trade and investment ties remain much too modest.

In this era of globalized businesses it is for the private sector, professionals, and others like you to take the lead. Governments today provide the necessary framework for economic cooperation. It is when you harness your talents for enterprise, innovation and hard work, that the sufficient conditions to raise our bilateral economic cooperation to levels that reflect their true potential will be achieved. I invite you to work towards this important objective.

I am happy that Governments on both sides are taking initiatives to enhance people-to-people links between our two countries. I can think of no better way to strengthen the foundation of our bilateral ties, and nurture them from generation to generation. Last year we celebrated the "Year of Russia in India" which was well received by everyone in India and gave us all an insight into modern Russia. This year we celebrate the "Year of India in Russia" which will give the people of Russia an insight into the dynamism and diversity of modern India. I would welcome your active participation in these events, and count on your support in ensuring its grand success.

Jai Hind.