Warm Russian, Indian ties outlive Cold War

Dmitry Medvedev

MUMBAI, (Reuters) – Russian President Dmitry   Medvedev’s warm reception in India, including wrapping up a   stealth jet fighters deal potentially worth $35 billion,   dispels Russian fears its former Cold War ally has turned to   the West.

Dmitry Medvedev

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who has in the space of a   few months hosted all the leaders of the five permanent   members of the U.N. Security Council, said “Russia is a   time-tested friend of India” at the start of Medvedev’s   two-day trip on Tuesday.

“In the past few weeks a number of heads of state have   made visits to India. India has emerged as one of the fastest   and  (most) powerful economies with plus 8 percent GDP growth   rate,” Foreign Minister S.M. Krishna said yesterday in New   Delhi.

“In the whole world only India and China could withstand   the recession in the past. This shows the resilience of India   and its increasing role in world politics and economy,” he said.       Russia has been India’s close economic and   political partner since Soviet days, and monopolised India’s   defence market for decades, but India has been steadily   reducing its reliance on one country to reflect its growing   influence on the world stage.

“President Dmitry Medvedev has done well to dispel the   growing misperception that Indo-Russian relations have lost   their salience amidst India’s new warmth with the U.S. and the   West,” the Indian Express newspaper said in an editorial.

Medvedev will spend his last day in India   visiting the Taj Mahal in Agra, meeting students in Mumbai and   touring “Bollywood” film studios, a big export industry to   Russia.

Medvedev, a photography buff who frequently posts his own   photos on the Internet, took pictures of the 17th century   monument dedicated to love, the state-run news agency RIA said.

“The Taj Mahal is a unique achievement of mankind,”   Mevedev wrote in the guest book.       Russia joined the United States and France in   offering support for India for a permanent seat at an expanded   Security Council to reflect the growing might of emerging   economies.

India says a seat on the Security Council would reflect   the G20 nation’s importance as its $1.3 trillion economy helps   spur global growth and its government exerts more and more   influence over issues from Doha trade to climate talks.

Reform is unlikely to happen quickly, however, with China   decidedly lukewarm about admitting its regional rival to the   U.N. top table.

India’s growing ties with the United States, underscored   by a landmark civil nuclear deal, has made Russia ill at ease.

India, the second fastest-growing major economy in the   world after China, is one of the top arms importers and plans   to spend about $50 billion on defence in the next few years to   upgrade its ageing Soviet-era arsenal, mainly to counter a   perceived China threat.

World leaders, accompanied by top executives, are hungry   to secure a slice of India’s largely undeveloped economy,   expected to grow at near-double digit rates for the next   decade, making it one of the five largest economies in the   world by 2020.

BARGAINING POWER

Russia has long seen India, which has a tradition of   trying to ensure it does not walking a careful line to avoid   backing one camp over another, as a counterweight to China and   a potential ally in Afghanistan.

“The strategic, economic and political importance of   Russia can not be overstated,” said Bhaskar Roy, a New   Delhi-based strategic affairs columnist.

“India needs Russia for its energy requirements, to   counter-balance China, for retaining influence in Afghanistan   once the Western troops leave, for influence in energy-rich   Central Asia, and generally for support and backing at all   major international fora. India needs Russia to realise its   ambitions, global goals,” Roy said.

No details were given as to the size of the potential   aircraft deal between Russia and India, but both countries   have in the past talked about producing 250-300 such fighters   over 10 years, unofficially said to be worth about $35 billion.