New Delhi, Dec. 3 -- Exchanges between leaders of India and Russia are usually staid, somewhat stodgy affairs in which everything goes by the script and the principals profess themselves to be in a "special" relationship before returning to their more pressing concerns. However, Russian President Vladimir Putin's two-day state visit to India for the 23rd annual India Russia summit on December 4-5 will be closely scrutinised not just in New Delhi and Moscow, but across capitals worldwide, including Washington, London, Paris, Bonn, Beijing, Kyiv, Riyadh and even Islamabad.

Putin will be making a rare visit outside Russia, his first to India since he launched the war against Ukraine in February 2022 and right after holding talks with US int...