Russian President Vladimir Putin is set to visit India later this week to attend the BRICS Summit in New Delhi and hold talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov announced on Tuesday.

Speaking to Indian mediapersons ahead of Putin’s visit, Peskov said that the two leaders will discuss bilateral ties and ongoing global issues with the Russian President informing PM Modi about the current situation in the Ukraine conflict.

Speaking from Moscow during a virtual briefing hosted by Sputnik India, Peskov highlighted the close ties shared between both countries and leaders, calling engagements between President Putin and PM Modi as “pragmatic”. He said that both leaders discuss issues of the global agenda and bilateral ties in an “open and constructive” manner.

“We’re looking forward to the coming visit of our President, in a couple of days, to New Delhi. He will take part in the BRICS Summit, in all the formats under the auspices of the BRICS Summit, and at the same time, there will be a very significant, for both countries, part of bilateral contacts with Prime Minister Modi. You know that our two leaders, Indian and Russian leaders, are in a very close personal contact. They are very pragmatic in their relationship, and they are as sincere as to be able to discuss in a very open and constructive way the most sensitive issues of the global agenda and our bilateral relations.