The second edition of the Indo-Russian Education Summit (IRES) 2026 commenced in New Delhi bringing together policymakers, diplomats, university leaders and education stakeholders from India and Russia to discuss expanding academic collaboration across higher education, healthcare and emerging technologies.
The summit, organised by Rus Education in collaboration with Rossotrudnichestvo and the Embassy of the Russian Federation in India, saw participation from senior officials from both countries amid growing interest among Indian students in Russian universities, particularly in medical education.
Among the key Russian delegates were Denis Alipov, Tatyana Semyenova and Pavel Shevtsov.
Indian representatives included Abhijat Chandrakant Sheth, Vinay Kumar Pathak and Pankaj Mittal, along with vice-chancellors and academic leaders from multiple universities.
The first day of the summit featured panel discussions on medical education, technical education, artificial intelligence, robotics, aerospace technologies, agriculture and youth cooperation, reflecting an attempt by both sides to broaden education engagement beyond traditional student mobility programmes.
Discussions during the event focused on student and faculty exchanges, collaborative research, dual-degree possibilities and institutional partnerships between Indian and Russian universities.
Speaking at the summit, Air Marshal (Dr.) Pawan Kapoor (Retd.), Vice Chairman of Rus Education, said the event aimed to strengthen long-term academic partnerships between institutions in the two countries.
Dr Elena Remizova, Head of the Representative Office of Rossotrudnichestvo in India, said the summit reflected the “strong educational and cultural bond” between India and Russia and would help expand cooperation between universities and students.
The summit comes at a time when Russia continues to remain a major destination for Indian students pursuing MBBS and other professional courses, while both countries are also looking to deepen cooperation in research, innovation and technology-led education.
