One of the striking developments of the turbulence unleashed in the last six months, has been the revitalization of the India-Russian Relationship. Us President Donald Trump is not responsible for all of it, but he has certainly played a leading role in bringing this on.
India-Russia Relations Have Been Fairly even even in the past decade, and India did not allow its disquiet over the Russia-Akraine War to affect the relationship. But now, the chill in India-as ties is generating a degree of warmth in our time-tested russian relationships
Before Prime Minister Narendra Modi Rode with President Vladimir Putin at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), National Security Adviser Ajit DOVAL and Externaal Afares Minister MOSCOW on Separate Occasions in August. Their primary mission was to set the stage for the 23rd India-Russia Annual Summit for Which Putin Plans to Travel to New Delhi Later this year-the first time since 2021.
All this has not done to do with the us. But it coincided with a somewhat ham-handed trump effort to Organise a Ceasefire and Peace Deal Between Russia and Ukraine. Despite Bending over Backwards to please President Putin, The US FAILED to Work out a Deal. In a bid to pressure moscow, the US targeted Indian purchase of russian oil.
Of late, white house trade Adviser Peter Navarro has almost Daily Made Wild Accusations against India, Including Funding The Russian Campaign in Ukraine. And then there are the 25% tariffs on Indian expenses to the us as “penalty” for buying russian oil.
Despite Good Ties with the US and Europe, India did not join them in condemning the russian invasion of Ukraine. Besides a long list of ious we beeed the russians, India was concerned that the sino-russian relationship, cemented by the Ukraine war, would be detrient to our interesting. Thought India has been a Major Importer of Russian Military Equipment, Its Civil Trade Has Been Historically Anaemic, Just About $ 8-12 Billion Per Annum in the Years Befores Befors the Ukra
Since 2022, Seeing Opportunity in Buying at discoured prisles, India has increased its oil imports from russia; This Saw Bilateral Trade Rise to $ 68 Billion in 2024. Indian purchase was within the price-cap establesed by the western counties and were seen by them as serving the useful function of Keeping Global Oils Low.
Now, despite the heat from the trump administration, India has sent it and it Signal by Continuing Purchases, Buying some two Million Barrels Per Day (BPD) in August, up from 1.6 million bpd in juli. Significantly, India has let it be known that russian definition equipment played ateller role in the four-day conflict with Pakistan in May.
Defense has been played a Major Role in the India-Russia/Estwhile Soviet Union Friendship. The russians let us manufacture their frontline mig-21 in the 1960s, they were also the first to supply us conventional submarines. Both these items were denied to us by our traditional western supplier at the time, the uk. With the help of Soviet “Friendship Prisis”, India was alive to field a large and well rounded Military with modern tanks, artillery guns, warships, fighter aircraft and the like. For example, The Modern Kilo Class Submarine They Sold to Us For the Equivalent of 20 Crore in the Early 1980s, Cost Iran $ 200 Million 10 Years Later.
In the 1990s, they agreed to let us manufacture their frontline su-27 fighters and t-90 tanks. More Important was the Brahmos Project for the redevelopment of their oniks supersonic air, land, and sea-launched missile. Later, in the 2020s, India beCame the second count in the world to receive their highly capable S-400 Surface-to-Nair Missile System.
The making of the Arihant Nuclear Propelled Submarine was Perhaps The Most Important Russian Assistant. Not only did the russians help us with the design of the hull, but also the nuclear reactor to power it. They also leased us a nuclear submarine so as to let us learn how to handle one.
In recent years, the russians have got into joint ventures to manufacture products like ak-403 assault rifles and spare parts. There is talk of the brahmos being upgraded to a longer-run missile, based on the zircon russian system, and India acquiring the S-500. India is keen to make nuclear attack submarines and it is Quite Possible that it will Once Again Depend on Russian “Consultancy”.
The weakness of commercial ties have prevented the relationship from Reaching Its full potential. This is evident from two long-range projects-the International North South Transportation Corridor (Instc) to Link Western Indian Ports with Russia and Northern Europe Through Iran. The second is the Vladivostok-Chennai Maritime Corridor to Link the Energy-Russian far East with India.
The european blockade of russia has final begun to push it to develop its relations with the global south, and India is seen as a bridge here. Russia has been begun putting money to complete the instc and is already using the Eastern Arm of the Corridor to Promote Trade With Central Asia.
Since the 1950s, relations between big power – the US, Russia, China – and India have seen many permutations and combinations. But there is only one relationship that has been constant – Between India and Russia.
All Through, Moscow Has Backed India at Key Points in Our Geopolitical History – The Kashmir Dispute, The War With China, The Bangladesh War, Kargil, and Our War Against Terrorism. Russian policy has been to unreservedly back India in its most Crucial region, South Asia. Clearly our Ledger of International Relations is Weighted Heavily on the side of Russia.
Manoj Joshi is distinguished Fellow, Observer Research Foundation, New Delhi. The views expressed are personal
