On MEA’s Russia Visit – Express View on Jaishankar in Moscow

Source: This post on MEA’s Russia Visit has been created based on the article “Express View on Jaishankar in Moscow: Not zero-sum” published in “Indian Express” on 29^th December 2023.

UPSC Syllabus Topic: GS Paper 2 International Relations – Bilateral groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests.

News: The article discusses Dr. S Jaishankar’s recent trip to Moscow. It highlights the significance of the visit and the changing dynamics of India-Russia bilateral relations.

The camaraderie between India and Russia was evident during Dr. S Jaishankar’s recent trip to Moscow.

Dr. Jaishankar rightly highlighted that amidst fluctuations in ties with other key nations, the Indo-Russian bond has remained remarkably steady and haven’t encountered significant disagreements. India and Russia have often found convergence in their geopolitical goals, particularly in maintaining a stable balance of power in Asia.

What is the status of India-Russia bilateral relations?

1) Trade & Energy Relations: Bilateral economic engagement hasrisen rapidly in the last two years. Bilateral trade has grown from about $12 billion to $50 billion last year, thanks to the massive oil imports from Russia.

2) India’s stand on Russian Aggression against Ukraine: India came under widespread criticism in the West for not condemning the Russian invasion of Ukraine and for expanding its energy and economic cooperation with Moscow.

What is the significance of the visit?

1) Aims to uphold a strong level of political involvement with the Russian leadership: This is important given the inability to hold the annual summits between PM Narendra Modi and President Vladimir Putin over the past two years due to the conflict in Ukraine.

2) Does not mark a break in the thriving strategic partnership between India and the US: It is wrong to interpret the visit as a major Indian decision to embrace Russia amid presumed setbacks to India’s relationship with the US (regarding the Gurpatwant Singh Pannun episode and the rejection of Republic Day Invitation by US President).

What are the new announcements during the recent visit?

First, talks for the Eurasian Economic Union-India free trade agreement have been resumed.

Second, agreement over furthering collaboration in future Kudankulam nuclear power projects.

Third, imports of Russian hydrocarbons will continue to rise despite the West’s Russian sanctions.

Fourth, as Russia will host the expanded BRICS summit next year, India will be beneficiary of coordination with Russia like at UN and SCO.

What are the changes in the bilateral relations between India and Russia?

The context of bilateral relations with Russia has fundamentally changed due to the following factors:

1) Economic Gap Reversed: India is no longer a junior partner to Russia. India’s GDP in 1991 was half that of Russia’s; today it is bigger than Russia’s by a large margin — $3.6 trillion to $2.2 trillion.

2) Dependence on Russian Military Imports Decreasing: India is diversifying away from its traditional military dependence on Russia — France and the US have emerged as major arms suppliers.

3) Increased Partnerships with the West: India’s commercial and technological relationships are deeply tied to the US, Europe and the UK. A large section of the Indian diaspora resides in the English-speaking world.

India is reconstituting its Russia relationship as an equal. There are concerns over defence supplies from Russia and the method of payment for imports from Russia. Yet both countries value sustaining a sensible bilateral relationship that will help them deal with an increasingly bipolar world.

Question for practice:

What is the significance of India’s bilateral ties with Russia? How are the dynamics of these relations changing in recent times?