Indian envoy praises relationship with Russia and sidesteps Western pressure

India’s foreign minister met his Russian counterpart in Moscow on Wednesday, as part of a diplomatic visit that highlights the two countries’ close economic ties even as international pressure has increased to isolate Russia over the war in Ukraine.

Of the beginning of the war in Ukraine in 2022, India will have done so adopted a neutral position on the conflict, citing long-standing ties with Russia and emphasizing Russia’s right to do so navigating an increasingly multipolar world his own way. Russia has long been the main military supplier to India, and when international sanctions began to restrict Russian oil sales, India quickly expanded its purchases to become one of the main buyers of competitively priced Russian petroleum.

Despite the Biden administration’s efforts to make aid to Russia costly, US officials have avoided open criticism of India. Instead of, President Biden and others have been courting Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with India seen as a potential ally to counter China’s growing economic and military influence. That courtship has continued even after U.S. law enforcement officials accused Indian officials in November of plotting the murder of an American Sikh activist in the United States.

Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar is midway through a five-day visit to Russia, which is expected to discuss many facets of the relationship between the two countries, including cooperation on nuclear energy projects, trade, civil aviation and defense.

Mr. Jaishankar, a career diplomat whose book on how India must carefully chart a multilateral diplomatic path is seen as a definitive look at the country’s foreign policy under Mr. Modi, and portrayed the close relationship between India and Russia as one of the few constants in a rapidly changing world.

“Normally, defense, nuclear energy and space are collaborations that you only do with countries with which you have a high degree of trust,” Mr. Jaishankar told members of the Indian diaspora in Moscow on Tuesday.

But the relationship is showing signs of strain. Indian officials are increasingly concerned that Russia’s pariah status will draw Moscow ever closer to China. On another potential competitive front: all three countries portray themselves more powerfully as a leadership resource and model for developing countries around the world.

Reflecting how India is trying to walk the line between Western pressure and its relationship with Russia, this is the second year in a row that Mr. Modi has skipped his traditional in-person summit with Russian leader Vladimir V. Putin. .

Happymon Jacob, who teaches Indian foreign policy at Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi, said that apart from India’s increased purchases of Russian oil, the relationship has been less close since the invasion of Ukraine.

However, he said, India will remain dependent on Russia to some extent, especially in the energy and defense sectors.

“Russia is the only country that has supplied India with nuclear reactors – despite the fact that India signed a nuclear deal with the United States in 2008,” he said.

During Mr Jaishankar’s visit on Tuesday, India and Russia agreed to build future power generation units of the Kudankulam nuclear power plant in southern India, which is being built with Russia’s help.