Moscow [Russia], October 8 (ANI): Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a telephonic conversation on Tuesday to discuss further strengthening the special and privileged strategic partnership between India and Russia, as well as preparations for President Putin's visit to India in December.

During the call, PM Modi conveyed his best wishes to President Putin for good health and continued success on his 73rd birthday.

The Russian President's Office said in a statement, 'In a phone call, Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi offered his best wishes to Vladimir Putin for his birthday. Both sides expressed interest in developing the special and privileged strategic partnership between India and Russia and briefly discussed preparations for the President of Russia's upcoming visit to India, to be made in December this year.'

http://en.kremlin.ru/events/president/news/78161

PM Modi spoke with the Russian President to extend warm greetings on his birthday. The two leaders reviewed the progress on the bilateral agenda and reaffirmed their commitment to deepen India-Russia ties further.

'Prime Minister Modi also conveyed that he looks forward to welcoming President Putin to India for the 23rd India-Russia Annual Summit in December,' according to an official statement.

Earlier, on September 27, Russian President Putin had also held a telephone conversation with Prime Minister Modi, reaffirming the strong and time-tested nature of relations between Moscow and New Delhi. The Russian leader shared details of the exchange during a meeting with members of the Russian Government, according to the official Kremlin website.

Putin underlined the stability of Russian-Indian relations, describing them as 'based on a national consensus.' He also commended India's achievements in governance and economic growth under Modi's leadership.

'Under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi, India was pursuing a completely independent, sovereign policy and, most importantly, was achieving very good results in the economic sphere. India was demonstrating the highest economic growth rates among the world's major economies,' Putin said.

The call came shortly after Putin sent a congratulatory telegram to Modi on the occasion of his 75th birthday. In his message, the Russian President emphasised the Indian leader's personal contribution to strengthening bilateral ties, as reported by TV BRICS. (ANI)