India Will always have equal partnership with both Russia and USA
By
Colonel Awadhesh Kumar
India of 2022 is fully capable of defending itself against China without any external help. This needs to be very clear to all those who wish to draw India somehow into a military alliance aimed at China.
At the same time, India will always be ready to have close bilateral relationship with both Russia and United States based on equality and friendship and not on grand strategy / scheming of either Washington or Kremlin. In fact, if China negotiates and demarcates an International Border between India and Tibet and a boundary between Tibet and China, then there will be solid bilateral relationship between the two Asian Giants.
As far India is concerned, Russia is a militarily very strong, politically highly reliable and a very friendly country which has had strong historical ties since 1947. India, the world’s biggest democracy, also has solid relationship with most of the East European countries. In fact at times better relationship than with some in the Western part of Europe. Such relationship has nothing to do with China as a military power.
At a summit in December between Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Russian leader Vladimir Putin both announced to the World that both Countries will continue to cooperate on military-technical matters “like with no other country.” The development and production of high-technology military equipment like BRAHMOS, a World beater is for all to see. China’s PLAN now must be reassessing its moves in the Indo Pacific, as Philippines Navy will soon be armed with it. Soon Vietnam and Indonesia may also go for it. DF 21 of China can be countered by most of the modern aircraft carriers but a salvo of BRAHMOS all at once will sink any Carrier, nuclear powered or conventional.
The sale of Brahmos marks an important landmark for India in its effort to become an exporter of military hardware, it’s a game changing move. Till now it was China arming Pakistan and Insurgents in the North Eastern States of India.
India’s military sales will increase the military diplomacy in Asia and Indo Pacific Countries will be able to stand up against China both collectively as ASEAN or individually. The Malacca chokepoint will become a nightmare for any unfriendly force.
The days of Bipolar or Unipolar world is quite over. Now it is India which will ensure that world becomes a multipolar world. Without joining any military block, it will ensure both economic and military balance. In fact this is what India had been doing before 1500 AD. Did India join any military block when it was weakest from 1947 onwards. Doklam, Maldives and Tpthe Ladhak has shown that China cannot glare down India, henceforth.
Today China is rising as the world’s wealthiest, militarily powerful, but territorially-aggressive dictatorship. Russia has come down a few notch after the breakup of the Soviet Union. However it still remains a World power. The USA still retains its overall position but is now a declining power.
India is already at number three position economically based on PPP model, a truer model than GDP model in USA dollar terms. Militarily it will be as good as any in next few years. The present military technological cooperation with Russia is going on well as per India’s requirement and are meant to be gap fillers. Also these technologies have been denied to India by the West or exorbitant prices have been asked. Price is ok but imagine, denying technology to India which invented ZERO itself ( list is endless of our past capabilities and future has started unfolding ). As a bogey some western countries are saying that cooperation with Moscow on military production will destroy existing indigenous capabilities. They can keep worrying for India or keep laughing, its their wish.
In fact all those who bat for World democracy, must cheer the fact that India has refused to be drawn into any military block. Also that it maintains equal relationship between Russia and USA. Stronger relationship by both USA and Russia with India will make the world more stable.
Instead USA still tries to equate India with Pakistan. Should India start equating USA and North Korea ? Then there is that funny USA law called CAATSA. It may be effective against Grenada etc but it’s inconceivable that USA administration even dreams that it will even be a mosquito bite on India. We Indians think that it will be a very foolish move to even utter the word CAATSA in the vicinity of an Indian. American laws don’t have VISA to enter India, that White House and Capitol Hill both should know.
