India, Oct. 2 -- Russian President Vladimir Putin has praised India's linguistic and cultural diversity, describing the country as an example of how different cultures, traditions and languages can coexist while remaining united.

"India cannot fail to amaze with its scale and diversity," he said.

"Few people know this, but Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi told me that of the 1.5 billion people, 700 million Indians speak their native language, Hindi, while most speak their own languages, and they all live together - amazing. But the rest, who are the majority, speak their own languages. It's shocking but in a good way," he said.

The Russian leader said India's culture could offer an example of how diversity and unity can exist togeth...