Key Points

Speaking to ANI, Puri noted that India and Russia share a long-standing strategic partnership, and it was only natural that Moscow was the first stop for the Indian delegation.

He further said the purpose of the visit was to convey India's concerns regarding terrorism and what it expects from the global community -- particularly from its close allies like Russia.

"India and Russia have old relationships, we are strategic partners, and we came to Russia, and the first stop was Russia. Why? Because we want to talk about what happened and what we expect from the world and our friends, with our strongest friends. And that was Russia. We came in, what did we receive from them? Everything that we would have thought of. They were positive, they understood our position, and what they said was that we stand firmly in solidarity and unity with you on terrorism, terrorists... Perpetrators of terrorism should be caught and brought to justice. Exactly the same kind of thing that we believe in. This was accord by Russia exactly as we thought by their leadership. We hope that the message gets through to Pakistan strongly that it is not just India, the world is saying so that this is something you've taken too far...," Puri told ANI.

The delegation is in Moscow to brief Russian leaders on India's response to the terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam on April 22, in which 26 civilians were killed, and cross-border terrorism.

The former Diplomat asserted, "Russians have been in strong solidarity with us. There is no doubt about it. They have said it publicly, they have said in conversations with Prime Minister and EAM and we appreciate this. That's our old ally and that's what we expect from them."

Days after United States (US) President Donald Trump claimed that he played a role in settling the escalating tensions between India and Pakistan, Puri stated that the Indian government has already made it clear that it was Pakistani side which had requested for the cessation of hostilities on which India agreed.

He said, "We resolve issues bilaterally. The timelines have been laid by the Indian government very clearly that Pakistani DGMO called our Director General as part of the hotline system which has been in place. We responded and the ceasefire was there. Pakistanis made the request and we agreed and it happened very soon thereafter."

As the Group 6 of all-party delegation is slated to visit Slovenia on May 27, stressing the importance of this nation, Puri said that Slovenia is currently part of the United Nations (UN) Security Council and such countries have global responsibility at this time.

"We want to tell them the same thing that we told to our Russian friends. Slovenia is serving at the UN Security Council for the moment. These are the countries which have global responsibility at the moment. They are important countries. And they understand it. It is important for us to draw attention to the fact that India has been strong on terrorism for decades. It is the time that world also becomes extremely strong on terrorism and those who perpetrate terrorism," Puri stated.

Earlier today, DMK MP Kanimozhi Karunanidhi asserted that links to terrorist attacks in India are always "traced back to Pakistan," as she reiterated India's zero-tolerance policy against terrorism.

The delegation, led by Kanimozhi, includes Samajwadi Party (SP) MP Rajeev Rai, Capt. Brijesh Chowta of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Prem Chand Gupta of Rashtriya Janata Dal, Ashok Kumar Mittal of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), and former Ambassador Manjeev S Puri.

They arrived in Moscow on Friday.

On Saturday, the delegation members paid floral tributes to Mahatma Gandhi's statue at the Indian Embassy in Moscow, where they were warmly welcomed by Indian Ambassador to the Russian Federation Vinay Kumar.

They also held a meeting with the Russian State Duma and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Apart from Russia, the delegation will visit Slovenia, Greece, Latvia, and Spain to highlight Operation Sindoor and reaffirm India's unwavering stand against terrorism.

- ANI