India, Dec. 3 -- Russian President Vladimir Putin will travel to India after four years for an annual bilateral summit at an interesting juncture. One, India-Russia ties are at their best since the days of the erstwhile Soviet Union. This is more on account of global factors, just as it was in the 1970s. Second, US-Russia talks aimed at ending the war in Ukraine are at an advanced stage, and a closure may be imminent, despite the misgivings of European nations. This could change the global dynamic. In this context, New Delhi and Moscow must focus on taking their relationship much beyond defence cooperation, which has acted as the ballast for many decades, and hydrocarbons, a relatively new factor that has boosted trade ties but in a manne...