NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi stood on the tarmac of Delhi’s Palam airport on Thursday evening, greeting Russian President Vladimir Putin with a warm hug and a rare personal welcome, an unmistakable signal of the weight India attaches to a relationship that has endured nearly eight decades of geopolitical upheavals.

Traditional dancers swayed, cameras flashed, and the red carpet stretched long as the two leaders slipped into the same car, echoing their drive together in Tianjin just three months ago after the SCO Summit.

Modi hosted Putin for a private dinner soon after his arrival, mirroring the hospitality the Russian leader extended to him in Moscow last year.

“Delighted to welcome my friend, President Putin, to India. Looking forward to our interactions later this evening

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