National Security Advisor Ajit Doval’s trip to Moscow to attend a high-level security meeting this week has been called off as he has been diagnosed with seasonal flu, official sources told India Today TV.

He was scheduled to attend the 13th International Meeting of High Representatives for Security Issues in the Russian capital from May 27 to May 29.

Doval is looking forward to resuming bilateral engagement with Russia on strategic and security matters at an early opportunity, sources said.

The meeting, which Doval was scheduled to attend, will be chaired by Russia’s Security Council Secretary Sergei Shoigu and will address various security issues.

Doval was to hold bilateral meetings with his various counterparts during the summit, including Shoigu, and was also expected to meet with Russian officials to discuss bilateral cooperation and regional security issues.

Had Doval attended the meeting, it would have been his first visit to Moscow following Operation Sindoor. The meeting also assumed significance due to Indian air strikes on Pakistani terror launch pads and the role played by BrahMos missiles, an India-Russia joint venture, and the S-400 air defence system.

It was likely that discussions with Russian authorities would have taken place over ongoing tensions with Pakistan apart from defence cooperation with Moscow and other regional security challenges.

Like India, Pakistan is also a member of the SCO, and its NSA Lt Gen Asim Malik is also expected to be in Moscow for the meeting, news agency PTI reported.

Notably, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh cancelled their Russia visits earlier this month owing to the security situation after the Pahalgam terror attack, in which 26 civilians were killed.

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