To Russia with Love: India- Russia are iron brothers: Current and critical issues that matter It was heartwarming and consolating to have Russian President Putin in India for the annual meeting with PM Narendra Modi. If one has watched the enthusiasm and passion of PM Modi during the meet and especially when he bid see off to President Putin. It was like the face of a father whose daughter is about to go with the bridegroom. WE have not seen such sincerity with any leader especially when it comes to the welfare of the nation. PM Modi leaves no stone untouched to keep his friends i.e. top world leaders in good humour and that is the reason he is loved and praised by them all. He places the nation first before himself. India and Russia have signed 28 MOUs [1] and one can go through them. These range from all-important science and technology, culture, space, commerce to defence cooperation and others. That apart from the presence of President Vladimir Putin himself was a great and big moment to see. That Russian President Vladimir Putin made a stopover to India, before his meeting with the US President a day before has multiple dimensions and speaks a lot about modern diplomacy. Astrologically one can see Jupiter and Mercury in angular position to Mars and Saturn. This shows the inherent conflicts of the meeting and its wider implications. It definitely shows the importance of India for the world leaders else Putin would not have spent his critical time in India. Russia and US are anxious about Ukraine. Russia is eager to annexe it while the US wants to stop the same. Thus from this PoV, the stop at India was used as a message to the United States. IN fact, the Russian foreign minister also made a critical and blunt statement about the Indian position on the S-400 missile defence system and arms purchases aimed at the US. Naturally, America will be more than anxious to see the developments happening. They have protested against the Indian purchase of S-400 but it seems that they will understand India’s position and constraints. The Chinese who keep an eerie silence but watch everything is another country that must have watched the entire summit very closely. That it continues to play the Asian card and accusing the United States to interfere in Asia with a divide and rule policy show its shrewd politics. Asia is being ruined and raped by China and not America we all know that. Whether its the south china Sea, Taiwan, Japan or India everyone is perplexed and worried about China’s action. The dragons game is over and it was good to see Arnab and Gaurav Arya on the Republic channel to blast the two Chinese speakers over this and another issue. India and Russia have to come closer and be like Iron brothers just the way Pak and China are. There are talks that Russia is more attached to China and that is something which is a reality that cannot be put off. We think that it should not matter much to us. IN the long run, geopolitics will always make Russia and India together and there is more probability for this than the Russian Chinese. Russia is also important for us for the Afghanistan turmoil where one will see the gradual influence of Russia in days to come. Conclusion: Diplomacy is the name of the game. India has to satisfy two eager but opposite powers like always. India has lost traditionally to this bitter war between Russia and America since the days of the Cold War. Pakistan and China both have gained so far from this. India has to now balance the relationship more craftily and intelligently rather than be a pawn in the game and keep suffering. This can happen only when India shows its importance to Russia, the US and all others about its potential and role. It cannot remain an observer and keep watching from a distance. It has to be proactive and provide sufficient reasons for both the powers to keep India on their side. There is no love lost in diplomacy. The Russian Presidents stopover to India can be seen emotionally or also as a hard-cold diplomatic decision. We Indians have always made it an emotional issue. That is good to an extent but we must not also forget the ground realities. A few years back Russia started flirting with Pakistan as India moved closer to US. The QUAD relationship that India is a part of has shaken both Russia and China. It was a sign that finally, India has taken sides with the Americans. Russia looks at it as a loss of a strategic friend while China looks it as an adversary gaining strength. The problem is the US considers Russia as a bigger threat than China. India has to play a role here and can be a good facilitator to improve the relationship between US and Russia. This fight is moreover hurt egos and a carryover of the cold war where Russia has lost. We don’t think Russia has anymore the ambition of becoming a superpower and replacing America. On the contrary, China has this ambition and especially Xi Jinping. While Russia and especially Putin keeps America irritating on the various front from Europe to Asia and Alaska, not to speak about its manoeuvres over Cremia and now Ukraine, it can be still won over, unlike China which is more steadfast and shrewd in geopolitics. Russian move in Ukraine can inspire China to do something similar in Taiwan. The world is all set to see major developments going forward. It is a coincident or a divine plan that some tough leaders are ruling various countries at the same time. America under Biden is no match for Russia under Putin or China under Xi. Under the circumstances, while India and America have to keep walking together, India has to multiply its relationship with Russia exponentially. It has to remain silent where it has to and should not try to show its secular or foolish stance. There will be some awkward positions for India in days to come and will be a real test for India, its PM and foreign policy. We wish our best wishes to the PM and Foreign ministry for the excellent diplomatic and international positioning. References [1] https://www.oneindia.com/india/list-of-28-agreements-mous-signed-during-the-21st-india-russia-annual-summit-in-new-delhi-3344647.html?story=1 |
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