INDO-RUSSIA Relationship

Recently India and Russia celebrated the 75th anniversary of their

diplomatic relations. This has come amid Russia-Ukraine war.

The India and Russia ties have been a longstanding relation. Since the
signing of the “Declaration on the India-Russia Strategic Partnership” in
October 2000, India-Russia ties have acquired a qualitatively new
character with enhanced levels of cooperation in almost all areas of the
bilateral relationship including political, security, defence, trade and
economy, science and technology, and culture.
The two countries, however, need to amend their policies as they are
interdependent on each other in various ways and continuing cordial ties
shall be beneficial for both, India and Russia.

India and Russia Bilateral Relations

 The Indo-Russian strategic partnership has been built on six major
components: politics, defence, trade, civil nuclear energy, anti-terrorism
cooperation and space

 During the Cold War, India and the Soviet Union had a strong strategic,
military, economic and diplomatic relationship. After the Dissolution of the
Soviet Union, Russia inherited its close relationship with India which resulted
in both nations sharing a Special Strategic Relation

 The Indo-Russian Inter-Governmental Commission (IRIGC) is the main body

that conducts affairs at the governmental level between both countries

 The two countries are members of various International Organisations and

connectivity projects. This includes:

 BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China, South Africa)

 Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO)

 Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG)

 United Nations Security Council (UNSC)

 India is the second-largest market for the Russian defence industry. In 2017,
approximately 68% of the Indian Military’s hardware import came from Russia,
making Russia the chief supplier of defence equipment

 Indian Defence minister visited Russia to commemorate World War II Victory

Day in 2020
Different Aspects of Indo-Russia
Relations?
 Historical Background:
o The India and Russia ties have been a longstanding relation.
Since the signing of the “Declaration on the India-Russia
Strategic Partnership” in October 2000, India-Russia ties
have acquired a qualitatively new character with enhanced
levels of cooperation in almost all areas of the bilateral
relationship including political, security, defence, trade and
economy, science and technology, and culture.
o During the Cold War, India and the Soviet Union had a
strong strategic, military, economic and diplomatic
relationship. After the Dissolution of the Soviet Union, Russia
inherited its close relationship with India which resulted in
both nations sharing a Special Strategic Relation.
o However, the relations have taken a steep downfall over
the past few years, especially in the post-Covid scenario. One
of the biggest causes for this is Russia’s close relations
with China and Pakistan, which have caused many
geopolitical issues in the past few years for India.
 Political Relations:
o The Annual Summit meeting between the Prime Minister
of India and the President of the Russian Federation is the
highest institutionalised dialogue mechanism in the strategic
partnership between India and Russia.
o Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Vladimir Putin
held their first informal Summit in the city of Sochi in the
Russian Federation in 2018.
o In 2019, President Putin signed the Executive Order on
awarding PM Narendra Modi Russia’s highest state
decoration – The order of St Andrew the Apostle. The
order was presented to PM for his distinguished contribution
to the development of a privileged strategic partnership
 between Russia and India and friendly ties between the
Russian and Indian peoples
o Two Inter-Governmental Commissions – one on Trade,
Economic, Scientific, Technological and Cultural
Cooperation (IRIGC-TEC), and another on Military-Technical
Cooperation (IRIGC- MTC), meet annually.
 Trade Relations:
o The two countries intend to increase bilateral investment to
US$50 billion and bilateral trade to US$30 billion by 2025.
o Bilateral trade during FY 2020 amounted USD 8.1 billion.
o From 2013 to 2016 there was a major decline in the trade
percentage between the two countries. However, it increased
from 2017 onwards and a constant increase was noticed in
2018 and 2019 as well.

 Defence and Security Relations:

o India-Russia military-technical cooperation has evolved from
a buyer-seller framework to one involving joint research,
development and production of advanced defence
technologies and systems
o Both countries regularly conduct the Tri-Services
exercise ‘INDRA‘.
o The joint military programmes between India and Russia
include:
 BrahMos cruise missile programme
 5th generation fighter jet programme
 Sukhoi Su-30MKI programme
 Ilyushin/HAL Tactical Transport Aircraft
 KA-226T twin-engine utility helicopters
 some frigates
 o The military hardware purchased/leased by India from Russia
includes:
 S-400 Triumf
 Kamov Ka-226 200 to be made in India under the Make
in India initiative
 T-90S Bhishma
 INS Vikramaditya aircraft carrier programme
o Russia also plays a very important role in assisting the Indian
Navy with its submarine programmes:
 Indian Navy’s first submarine, ‘Foxtrot Class’ came from
Russia
 India is dependent on Russia for its nuclear submarine
programme
 INS Vikramaditya, the sole aircraft carrier operated by
India, is also Russian in origin.
 Nine of the fourteen conventional submarines operated by
India are Russian.

What are Other Important Areas of Relations between India

and Russia?
 Nuclear Relations:
o Russia is an important partner for India in the area of peaceful
use of nuclear energy. It recognizes India as a country with
advanced nuclear technology with an impeccable non-
proliferation record.
o Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KKNPP) is being built in
India .
o Both India and Russia are implementing Rooppur Nuclear
Power Project in Bangladesh
 Space Exploration:
 o Both sides cooperate in the peaceful uses of outer space,
including satellite launches, GLONASS navigation system,
remote sensing and other societal applications of outer space.
o An MoU ISRO and ROSCOSMOS on Joint Activities in the
field of Human Spaceflight Programme was signed during
the 19th Bilateral Summit.
 Science and Technology:
o The Working Group on Science and Technology functioning
under IRIGC-TEC, the Integrated Long-Term Programme
(ILTP) and the Basic Science Cooperation Programme are
the three main institutional mechanisms for bilateral Science
and Technology cooperation, while the Science Academies of
the two countries promote inter-academy exchanges.
o A number of new initiatives in this sphere include India-Russia
Bridge to Innovation, cooperation in telemedicine, creation of
a Traditional Knowledge Digital Library (TKDL), and the
Russia India Network (RIN) of universities.
 Cultural Relations:
o About 20 Russian Institutions, including leading universities
and schools, regularly teach Hindi to about 1500 Russian
students
o Apart from Hindi, languages such as Tamil, Marathi, Gujarati,
Bengali, Urdu, Sanskrit and Pali are taught in Russian
Institutions
o Indian dance, music, yoga and Ayurveda are among few
other interests that people of Russia enjoy.
What is the Significance of Russia for India?
 Balancing China: The Chinese aggression in the border areas of
eastern Ladakh, brought India-China relations to an inflection
point, but also demonstrated that Russia can contribute to
defusing tensions with China.
o Russia organized a trilateral meeting among the foreign
ministers of Russia, India, and China following deadly
clashes in the Galwan Valley in the disputed territory of
Ladakh.
 Emerging New Sectors of Economic Engagement: Apart from
traditional areas of cooperation such as weapons, hydrocarbons,
nuclear energy, and diamonds, new sectors of economic
engagement are likely to emerge — mining, agro-industrial, and
high technology, including robotics, nanotech, and biotech.
o India’s footprint in the Russian Far East and in the Arctic is
set to expand. Connectivity projects may get a boost too.
 Combating Terrorism: India and Russia are working to close the
gap on Afghanistan and are calling for early finalization of
the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism.
 Support At Multilateral Forums: Additionally, Russia supports
India’s candidacy for permanent membership of a
reformed United Nations Security Council and of the Nuclear
Suppliers Group.
 Russia’s Military Exports: Russia has been one of the largest
arms exporters to India. Even as Russia’s share in India’s arms
imports fell by over 50% in the last five-year period compared to
the previous five years (2011–2015).
o In the last 20 years, India imported arms and weapons worth
USD 35 billion from Russia, according to the Stockholm
International Peace Research Institute which tracks global
arms trade.
o

Way Forward
 Russia To Provide Timely Maintenance Support: Timely
supply of spares and support to the large inventory of Russian
hardware in service with the Indian military has been a major
issue from India.
o To address this, Russia has made legislative changes
allowing its companies to set up joint ventures in India to
address it following an Inter-Governmental Agreement signed
in 2019.
o This agreement needs to be implemented in a time-bound
manner.
 Acknowledging Importance of Each Other: Russia will remain
a key defense partner for India for decades to come.
 o On the other hand, Russia and China are currently in a quasi-
alliance setup. Russia repeatedly reiterates that it does not
see itself as anybody’s junior partner. That’s why Russia
wants India to act as a balancer.
 Joint Military Production: The two countries have been
discussing how they can cooperate in using India as a production
base for exporting to third countries Russian-origin equipment and
services.

India-China relations

Beijing’s insistence that the boundary dispute should not be privileged is a product of
its past success, where it could continue to keep up the pressure on the border even
as other aspects of engagement developed to its advantage, writes Harsh Pant
The Sino-Indian border dispute is an on-going territorial dispute over the sovereignty
of two relatively large, and several smaller, separated pieces of territory between
China and India.

Brahmaputra issue

The Brahmaputra,also known as the Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibet, the

Siang/Dihang River in Arunachal Pradesh, and Luit, Dilao in Assam,
originates in the Manasarovar Lake region, near the Mount Kailash,
flows through South Tibet, India, and Bangladesh.
The construction of Dams over Brahmaputra River in Tibet region has
raised concerns among Indian side. It has been a long-standing part of
the grand South-North Water Transfer project conceptualised as early as
in the 1950s by Mao Zedong.

Important points from Historical interactions:

1. The Brahmaputra agreement between China and India is a suboptimal

arrangement within broader bilateral relations. China has thus far agreed to share
hydrological data on the Yarlung Tsangpo/Brahmaputra (YTB) during the monsoon
season. Further cooperation on water, however, is in a state of a deadlock. The
agreement, at best, is a piecemeal discount offered by China.
2. Discussions over the YTB have often been overshadowed by the border dispute.
3. Departing from the past, China’s approach to trans -boundary water sharing is
shifting towards multilateral arrangements. Eg. In 2015, China signed the
Lancang-Mekong Cooperation (LMC) framework.
4. China is cooperating more with Bangladesh on water issues. China charges
approximately $125,000 for the data it provides to India; at the same time, it
sends similar data to Bangladesh for free. China could well be aiming to encircle
India to reach a deal on the sharing of YTB that favours China’s objective of
economic expansionism.
5. Indian approach to the YTB issue is influenced by developmental imperatives and
domestic politics. India’s own water diversion plans – the national river interlinking
project – Bangladesh and Pakistan have criticised India for being hypocritical in its
approach with China. India tends to play the lower riparian card to gain sympathy
from its domestic political constituencies, especially of Assam and Arunachal
Pradesh.
Environmental concerns:

6. Flooding in states like Assam and Bangladesh affecting flora and fauna in
prominent national parks like Kazirang a which is home to some of the critically
endangered species.
7. Himalayan belt is prone to frequent earthquakes.

Brahma Chellany: Northward rerouting of the Brahmaputra waters (known as

Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibet) from the Tibetan borders through constructions of dams
would lead to drying up of river downstream in Assam and Bangladesh.
Nilanjan Ghosh: Water flows in arid Tibet are much lower than in the Indian side.
Most of water to Brahmaputra comes from Indian monsoon and tributaries of Indian
rivers so even with Zangmu Dam there isn’t much water for China to divert.

India’s Plans:

1. It needs to clearly envision the desired end goal and strategic outcomes for
dealing with impending water conflicts.
2. It needs to de-emphasise China’s role for the time being and restrengthen its
relationship with Bangladesh. It needs to push the impending Teesta river
agreement and restore its image as a responsible upper riparian.
3. India needs to mirror its strength and firmness in negotiations with China on water
rights, as it did in the case of the Doklam stand-off and in opposing the Belt and
Road Initiative, rather than projecting itself as a victim.

Both the countries must work towards not just preserving the environment and
restoring ecological balance but also to sustainably use the water resources for its
abundant population.

Economic relations

China forms an integral part of the global supply chain, and India too is
heavily dependent on Chinese imports, ranging from a variety of raw
materials to critical components. China accounted for over 5% of India’s
total exports in financial year 2019-20 and more than 14% of imports.
According to data from 2019, a staggering 70% of electronic
components, 45% of consumer durables, 70% of Active Pharmaceutical
Ingredients (APIs), and 40% of leather goods come from China.
Products such as fertilizers are 76% cheaper, electronic circuits 23%,
and data processing units around 10% cheaper if made in China.
China’s Debt-Trap diplomacy
Debt-trap diplomacy is a theory that describes a powerful lending
country or institution seeking to saddle a borrowing nation with
enormous debt so as to increase its leverage over it. Debt-trap
diplomacy was associated with Indian academic Brahma Chellaney, who
promoted the term in early 2017.
How does China’s debt trap diplomacy work?

1. To gain rapid political and economic ascendency across the

globe, China is dispensing billions of dollars in the form of
concessional loans to developing countries, mostly for their
large-scale infrastructure projects.
2. These developing nations, which are primarily low- or middle-
income countries, are unable to keep up with the repayments,
and Beijing then gets a chance to demand concessions or
advantages in exchange for debt relief.

What concessions are demanded by China?

1. Sri Lanka, for instance, was forced to hand over control of the
Hambantota port project to China for 99 years, as it owed
massive debt to Beijing. This allowed China control over a key
port positioned at the doorstep of its regional rival India, and a
strategic foothold along a key commercial and military
waterway.
2. In exchange for relief, China constructed its first military base
in Djibouti. Whereas Angola is replaying multibillion-dollar debt
to China with crude oil, creating major problems for its
economy.

What are these concessional loans granted by China?

1. The ‘concessionality’ factor is achieved either by offering

interest rates that are below the market rates or leniency in the
grace period, and often with a combination of both.
2. These loans generally have long grace periods.
Has India taken any loans from China?

1. India has not entered into any loan agreement directly with
China.
2. However, it has been the top borrower of Asian Infrastructure
Investment Bank (AIIB), a multilateral bank wherein China is
the largest shareholder (26.6% voting rights) and India the
second (7.6% voting rights) among other countries.

How is the debt trap affecting India, then?

Most of India’s neighbours have fallen prey to China’s debt trap, and ceded to
China’s $8 tn project – One Belt One Road Initiative (OBOR) which seeks to improve
connectivity among countries in Asia, Africa and Europe.
Many nations have ceded control over strategic sea ports which can affect India’s
regional security.
China through OBOR can increase India’s political cost of dealing with its neighbours
because Kashmir, which India considers its part is also used in OBOR by Pakistan.
Kautilya, the famous India theorist on statecraft, suggests it is important to monitor
and contain the activities of the state’s “enemy” and its diplomacy through
engagement and cooperation rather than war.
Brahma Chellany, India’s leading China expert, writes in The Japan Times: “Indeed,
by working to establish its dominance along the major trade arteries, while instigating
territorial and maritime disputes with several neighbors, China is attempting to
redraw Asia’s geopolitical map.”
In The Times of Central Asia, James Dorsey informs that a leaked long-term plan for
China’s massive $56-billion investment in Pakistan exposes the goals of Beijing’s
One Belt, One Road initiative as a “ploy for economic domination, the creation of
surveillance states, and allowing China to influence media landscapes.”
Kautilya, the famous India theorist on statecraft, suggests it is important to monitor
and contain the activities of the state’s “enemy” and its diplomacy through
engagement and cooperation rather than war.

Steps by India:

1. New Delhi has been promoting Japanese investment in the Iranian port of
Chabahar.
2. Indian efforts towards joint India–Japan Asia–Africa Growth Corridor are aimed at
checking China’s OBOR initiative, though it is no match to BRI.
3. India plans to step up foreign diplomacy by highlighting poor returns and debt trap
issues.
4. New Delhi is also actively involved in Quad involving USA, Australia and Japan. It
aims to deter China’s control over South China sea and collectively reduce trade
imbalance with China.

China’s Belt Road Initiative and its impact on India’s

sovereignty.
BRI is a global infrastructure development strategy adopted by the Chinese
government in 2013 to invest in nearly 70 countries and international organizations.
For India, BRI is a plan to dominate Asia, warning of what some analysts have called
a “String of Pearls” geoeconomic strategy whereby China creates unsustainable debt
burdens for its Indian Ocean neighbors in order to seize control of regional choke
points.
“India does a lot with China in the multilateral arena for its own reasons,” says CFR’s
Alyssa Ayres.

INDO-US relationship

If one were to look at the long list of diplomats, officials, and ministers from
across the globe rushing to New Delhi in recent times, India’s role as an
emerging global superpower is quite easy to infer.

In the context of the US, India is the centrepiece of the Joe Biden
administration’s Indo-Pacific strategy - Indian Foreign and Defence
Ministers recently held the ‘2+2’ meeting with their American
counterparts.

Although the two countries are not sharing consensus over the Russia-
Ukraine Conflict - one of the most worrying issues in global geopolitics, it
is in their mutual interest to rise above differences and ensure
continuous cooperation.

How have been India’s Relations with the US Lately?

 India-US bilateral partnership today encompasses a whole host of
issues including the response to Covid-19, economic
recovery post-pandemic, the climate crisis and sustainable
development, critical and emerging technologies, supply
chain resilience, education, the diaspora, and defence and
security.
 The breadth and depth of Indo-US ties remain unmatched and the
drivers of this partnership have been growing at an
unprecedented rate.
 o The relationship remains unique insofar as this is driven at
both levels: at the strategic elite as well as at the people-
to-people level.
 Although India and the US have quite contradictory responses
towards the Russia-Ukraine crisis, in the recent meeting, the
PM of India and the US President expressed that the world’s two
major democracies are willing to work around their
divergences to arrive at mutually acceptable outcomes.

o India and the US have underscored their commitment to

continue to build on the momentum of recent years and not
lose sight of the larger strategic picture.
What was the Outcome of the Recent 2+2 Dialogue?
 The dialogue saw the signing of the Memorandum of
Understanding (MoU) on space situational awareness as the
two nations seek to deepen cooperation in outer space and
cyberspace to develop capabilities in both “war-fighting domains”.

o They also agreed to launch an inaugural Defence Artificial

Intelligence Dialogue, while expanding joint cyber training
and exercises.
 The defence partnership between India and the US continues to
grow rapidly with the US secretary of defence underlining that the
two nations have “identified new opportunities to extend the
operational reach of our militaries and to coordinate more closely
together across the expanse of the Indo-Pacific.”
 The US also pointedly mentioned that China was constructing
“dual-use infrastructure” along the border with India and that it
would “continue to stand alongside” India to defend its
sovereign interest.
What Could Drift the US Away?
 Strong Indo-Russia Relations: Russia is not a new factor in this
relationship. India has chosen to increase, rather than reduce,
import of its meagre crude oil supplies from Russia, being
offered at a discount.
 o The India-Russia defence relationship has also been an
irritant in the Indo-US relationship.

 The CAATSA law has been part of the discussion for a

long time on India’s purchase of the S-400 Triumf
missile defence system from Russia.
 However, there is a clear recognition in the US that any
move to sanction India would take the relationship
back by decades.
o Despite a warning by the U.S. about the “consequences to
countries that actively attempt to circumvent or backfill the
sanctions,” India and Russia are exploring ways of
conducting bilateral trade by bypassing the dollar-based
financial system.
 India’s Possibilities of Cooperation with China: In recent years,
China had looked at Indian moves in the region through the prism
of their U.S. policy, but India’s stance on Ukraine has triggered a
rethink in Beijing.

o The Chinese Foreign Minister’s recent visit to India was

an exploratory step towards a larger strategic reset with the
latter, driven by the need to wean India away from
the Quad.

 During his visit, China offered to create a virtual G-2 in

Asia by protecting India’s traditional role and
collaborating on developmental projects as ‘China-India
Plus’ in South Asia.
o While Indian and American policies are at variance in
countries such as Myanmar, Iran and Afghanistan, China is
the one interest that aligns the two countries together.

 If this moment provides for a reset of India’s ties with

China, it will alter India’s relationship with the
U.S. and raise questions about the effectiveness of
Quad.
What is the Way Forward?
 India-US Military Cooperation: The US Secretary of State for
Political Affairs during her recent visit to India, acknowledged that
“India’s dependence on Russia for defence supplies is crucial”
and that this was “legacy of security support from the Soviet
Union and Russia at a time when the US was less generous
with India.”

o However, with the new realities of today shaping the trajectory

of this bilateral engagement, it is time for the US to help
India in building its defence manufacturing
base through technology transfer as well as co-production
and co-development.
 Exploring Opportunities: India is emerging as a leading player
in an international system that is undergoing an unprecedented
transformation. It shall use its present situation to explore
opportunities to further its vital interests.

o India and the US are strategic partners today in the true

sense of the term - a partnership among mature major
powers that is not seeking a complete convergence but
managing differences by ensuring a continuous dialogue
and channelling these differences into crafting new
opportunities.
 Cooperation in Security: Russia’s increased alignment with
China as a result of the Ukraine crisis only complicates India’s
ability to rely on Russia as it balances China. Hence, continuing
cooperation in other security areas is in both countries’
interests.

o Space governance will become central to the US-

India bilateral relationship, driven by mutual concern about
the increasing space capabilities of the Chinese Army.