New Delhi, October 11

Ahead of their annual bilateral Summit, India has conveyed its opposition to Russia over its joint exercise with Pakistan, a nation which “sponsors and practises terrorism as a matter of State policy”, saying it will create further problems.Indian Ambassador to Moscow Pankaj Saran said this in an interview to Russian news agency Ria Novosti. His remarks come ahead of the bilateral meeting in Goa on Saturday between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin, who will be arriving in India on October 14. Apart from bilateral Summit, Putin will attend the Brazil-Russia-India-China-South Africa (BRICS) meet on October 16.India has been communicating its unhappiness to Russia over its joint military exercises with Pakistan. However, these concerns have been played down by the Russians who maintain that they hold similar military drills with other countries of the region as well.Saran also said: “There are some burning issues before the world today which the BRICS countries will certainly address and this includes the question of terrorism and the threat of terrorism faced by all countries in the BRICS group. So this will be a major item of discussion during the Summit apart from the regional conflicts and the global situation.”On India-Russia ties, the envoy said the two countries shared a special and privileged strategic partnership. — PTI