New Delhi, Dec 5 : Russian President Dmitry Medvedev is cutting short his visit to India and returning home as Russian Patriarch, Alexei-II, head of the Orthodox Church died in Moscow.

Medvedev, who arrived in New Delhi last night on a three-day visit will leave for Moscow on Friday evening.

According to Russian officials, he has also cancelled his tour to Italy.

Russian Patriarch Alexy-II was instrumental in the post-Soviet spiritual revival of the country.

Medvedev was scheduled to leave on Saturday morning.

On Friday, India and Russia signed a landmark agreement on civil nuclear cooperation.

Russia and India have seen a growth in bilateral trade this year, which increased in the first nine months of 2008 by 41.6 per cent to 3.8 billion dollars year-on-year.

The last Russian-Indian summit was held in November 2007, when Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh visited Russia. (ANI)