Modi Visited Russia To Demonstrate Independent Foreign Policy Free of External Pressures
By
Colonel Awadhesh Kumar, Special Forces
Even when India had hardly any military prowess, it never joined any of the International Military Blocks. Instead it floated the Non Aligned Movement of its own. So the recent moves of India to strengthen its ties with USA, based totally on equality and reciprocity, cannot be interpreted as any kind of tilt towards USA.
Russia, in fact understands these actions of India, a solid friend since mid 1960’s and knows that India would never kowtow with USA on any thing against a third country, not even North Korea, unless that country was going to harm India deliberately.
Then also, India would take independent action or go along with a legal mandate of UN. India had stood with Russia during Ukraine crisis. Thus Russia too stood with India on the Kashmir issue.
Russian Ambassador to India Nikolay Kudashev said that “India’s decision on Jammu and Kashmir is a sovereign decision which is as per its Constitution,” during a press conference in late August.
The Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has just visited Vladivostok to participate in the 20th India-Russia Annual Summit and attend the fifth meeting of the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) as chief guest. This is the result of a steadiness of Russian-Indian bilateral interactions.
Such a summit is also to demonstrate to the whole world in general and the USA in particular that Indian bilateral relationship with each country will remain independent of its relationship with any other country. So India just went ahead ignoring the current Russian American relationship.
Downtrend in Russian American relationship is to be improved by Putin and Trump and such relationship will not affect Modi’s visit to either countries.
This visit by Modi, to Russia is thus not a countermove to hedge New Delhi’s tilt to the US but rather it is pure Indian wish. New Delhi will not catch cold through either the Siberian Winds or the Alaskan winds and certainly not from anything blowing from North of Himalayas.
In fact in recent years, India-US relations have been improving at a very fast rate. India has even signed three out of four foundational defense agreements (GSOMIA, LEMOA and COMCASA) with the US.
However,so has India signed similar agreements with even France and Russia. USA now has termed India as a major defence partner a status reserved for closest allies of the US.
The sale of military equipment to India also increased significantly like the Sea Guardian UAVs, multi-role helicopters (MRHs) and long-range maritime patrol P8Is.
Still the above cannot be any kind of tilt. Russia is selling S400 Air defence system, leasing nuclear powered submarine, helping in nuclear reactors etc. Indo Russian arms trade is for around Rs 1100000 crores ( 15 billion $ ) this year alone. All this is taking place in spite of open threat sanctions on India ……each time the threat issuer has to just lump it.
India and the US have definitely come closer to each other like never. By coming closer to USA, Indian strategic autonomy will never get compromised. India, is a world-class power, and will always remain so. Time is over when any one particular arms supplier, can squeeze its strategic space.
No wonder India just ignored US sanctions threats to sign the Rs 40000 crores S-400 missile defense system deal with Russia. India needs these missiles to fill the gap, as its own similar system will take a few more years to mature and get deployed.
This decision tellingly demonstrated to every one including Washington and Moscow that New Delhi can no longer be viewed only through their respective prisms. Delhi has its own independent will and policies.
New Delhi and Russia have common views on most of the global geostrategic issues. For example, the US, even if sharing wariness of China with India, has been reluctant to sell the latter critical weapons like nuclear submarines or hypersonic missiles.
The only country that is both capable and willing to sell these weapons remains Russia. Though all know that India too is in advanced stages of developing these weapons and will soon be matching any in the world.
Modi’s visit to Russia and soon to USA has no bearing on the Kashmir situation. The situation in Kashmir is quite normal and no amount of BBC or even some the Brit MPs calling it Indian Occupied Kashmir is going to make things abnormal. Major Western governments and media outlets may remain skeptical of Indian moves in Kashmir, it is if no concern to India.
Though India calling Falkland as Malvinas or Northern Ireland as British Occupied Ireland may start affecting things in South America and Europe at a rapid pace. The US approached the Kashmir issue with a balancing stance and even offered to mediate between India and Pakistan and was naturally rebuffed. Is Trump ready to sit with Iran and North Korea with India ready to mediate ?
Moscow has good relationship with India, and so India is now in a position to pass economic and strategic benefits to its friend. A large contingent of Indian entrepreneurs have gone with PM Modi and India has signed a number of high-profile memorandum of understandings, including developing a maritime corridor from Vladivostok to Chennai, a deal for India to manufacture spare parts for Russian military equipment, an agreement by Indian companies to purchase Russian LNG etc.
