MOSCOW. Sept 8 (Interfax) - Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi have reaffirmed their intentions to increase coordination between the two countries, including on the situation in Afghanistan, at a meeting in New Delhi, the Russian Security Council staff said.
"The intention of the two countries to step up coordination in the field of strengthening regional stability, including on the Afghan track, was reaffirmed," the Security Council staff said following the meeting between Patrushev and Modi.
During the talks, Patrushev and Modi touched upon a wide range of issues pertaining to Russian-Indian cooperation, as well as a number of problems on the international agenda, it said.
"Opportunities for the further development of the especially privileged strategic partnership between Russia and India, including enhancing political dialogue at the highest levels, were discussed. The prospects for stepping up interaction within multilateral formats, including the SCO [Shanghai Cooperation Organization] and BRICS, as well as the development of Russian-Indian trade and economic cooperation, were discussed," the Security Council said.
Patrushev held talks with the national security advisor to the Indian prime minister and the foreign minister of the country in New Delhi earlier on Wednesday. The situation in Afghanistan and Russian-Indian bilateral cooperation were discussed.
Patrushev was not planning to meet in New Delhi with Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director William Burns, and such a meeting did not take place, Security Council spokesperson Yevgeny Anoshin said.
"Patrushev did not plan to meet and did not meet with the CIA director in New Delhi," Anoshin said.
He noted that Patrushev has an extensive program for his visit to India, and "he is holding meetings with the heads of a number of Indian institutions and with the country's leadership."