The Russian president praised the Indian prime ministers enormous personal contribution to strengthening bilateral ties

Russian President Vladimir Putin has conveyed birthday wishes to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who turned 75 on Wednesday.

The two leaders have had a personal friendship since Modi was elected prime minister for the first time in 2014.

"Dear Mr. Prime Minister, please accept my heartfelt congratulations on the occasion of your 75th birthday," Putin said in greetings released by the Kremlin. "You are making a great personal contribution to strengthening the special privileged strategic partnership between our countries, to developing mutually beneficial Russian-Indian cooperation in various areas."

In his message Putin said that under Modi's guidance, India had achieved impressive results in the social, economic, scientific, and technological spheres. "I highly appreciate our close comradely relations. We will certainly continue our constructive dialogue and joint work on the current issues on the bilateral, regional and international agendas."

During their talks earlier this month on the sidelines of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) summit in Tianjin, the two leaders stressed that the strategic partnership between their nations is expanding across various sectors.

Modi said Russia and India have walked "shoulder-to-shoulder" in the "most difficult of situations," adding, "Our close cooperation is important not only for the people of both countries but also for global peace, stability and prosperity."

The Russian president is slated totravelto India for an annual bilateral summit in December.

Apart from Putin, Modi received greetings from leaders in the US, Israel, Australia, and Italy, among other nations.

"Just had a wonderful phone call with my friend, Prime Minister Narendra Modi," US President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social. "I wished him a very Happy Birthday! He is doing a tremendous job. Narendra: Thank you for your support in ending the War between Russia and Ukraine!"

(RT.com)