Sushma off to Moscow to co-chair intergovernmental panel

New Delhi: India and Russia will seek to strengthen their strategic partnership across different sectors, including trade and energy, as both sides hold the 21st session of the India-Russia Intergovernmental Commission on Trade, Economic, Scientific, Technological and Cultural Cooperation (IRIGC-TEC) in Moscow.

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj left here on Monday to co-chair the intergovernmental commission talks, which would be co-chaired on the Russian side by Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin.

"Moscow calling! EAM @SushmaSwaraj departs for XXI India-Russia Inter Governmental Commission meeting," External Affairs ministry spokesperson Vikas Swarup tweeted.

Sushma will be in Moscow from October 19-21. She is accompanied by Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar and senior officials from the ministry of external affairs as well as other ministries including commerce and industry, petroleum and natural gas, civil aviation, culture, and science and technology.

The IRIGC-TEC is a key institutional mechanism to promote and strengthen India's special and privileged strategic partnership with Russia across different sectors.

While in Moscow, Sushma will also hold a bilateral meeting with her Russian counterpart Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on bilateral, regional and international issues of mutual interest.

While India's trade with the US is around $100 billion, with Russia, the two-way trade still stands at $10 billion.

The IRIGC-TEC is the apex government-to-government forum to review economic cooperation.

The 20th session was held in New Delhi on November 5,2014.

(IANS)