Russian president Putin proposes visa-free travel deal with India during talks with Modi
Samarkand/IBNS: Russian President Vladimir Putin has sought a visa-free travel arrangement with India during his dialogue with Indian PM Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the annual meet of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO).
In the course of bilateral talks with India, Putin mentioned that the South Asian nation's history and culture have been of great relevance to his countrymen, said media reports.
"We propose accelerating the process of negotiations towards an agreement on visa-free tourist travel," Putin was quoted as saying by Russia's official news agency TASS.
On Tuesday, Deputy Chairman of Moscow metropolis tourism committee Alina Arutyunova said in Mumbai that Russia could introduce a visa-free regime for Indian tourists.
"The President of the Russian Federation has supported an initiative to introduce a visa-free regime for group tourists. Such an order has already been received for Iran on Tuesday. It’s possible that the same assignment will soon be for India," Arutyunova was quoted as saying by the Times of India.
The data revealed by Moscow City Tourism Committee shows that more than 13,000 Indians visited Moscow in the first half of this year despite continued conflict between Russia-Ukraine since February
The foot traffic is expected to get back to pre-Covid19 levels by 2023 year-end, it indicated.
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