Manoj Ambat's Blog dealing with Defence, Foreign Affairs, Strategic Affairs and Politics

Image credits- Flickr / MEA India Official Source- Russia & India Report Author-  VIKTOR LITOVKIN ,   IZVESTIA The Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi has returned from the United States. Over the past two years, the Indian prime minister has visited the States four times, and has been called “a key partner in the field of defence”, which opens for New Delhi unlicensed access to a wide range of US dual-use technologies and will help to establish co-production of new weapons. Some media immediately made a categorical conclusion: “Russia’s strategic partner turns to the United States.” But does it? Of course not. The statements made by some analysts, that “Russia is losing the Indian market”, are nothing more than a manifestation of incompetence or, if you call a spade a spade, a means of unfair competition, as well as the continuation of an information war against our country. India is not a fidgety woman who turns in one direction and then in another

Image credits- Kremlin Official image gallery Source- The Diplomat Author- Jayant Singh As strategic relations go, few countries can match the enduring partnership that India and Russia have shared since the 1960s. For close to half a century Russia has been New Delhi’s foremost military supplier. In fact, defense trade became the raison d’être for strategic relations between the two nations – particularly in the post-Cold War era. Yet Russia’s share of military sales to India is now in steady decline. In consonance with India’s enhanced geopolitical status and strategic rapprochement with the U.S., New Delhi has found new partners in the West. And what was once the defining aspect of the bilateral relationship with Russia is threatening to become a heavy burden for both partners. This shift has been a decade in the making and can be traced back to the 123 Agreement that India signed with the U.S. The pursuit of a “strategic partnership” with India is perhaps the most

Image credits- Wikipedia Commons/ Igor Dvurekov Source- The Russia & India Report Author-  Petr Topychkanov The visit to Pakistan by a large delegation from the Russian Ministry of Defence, led by Sergey Shoygu last month once again showed a particular weakness in Russia-India relations, and in particular, government and public relations. There are at least two reasons that should make the Russian authorities pay careful attention to government and public relations. The first reason is the complicated relationship between India and Pakistan. In the context of this relationship any news about the development of Russian-Pakistan relations can be negatively interpreted in India. The second reason is the existence in political, business and media circles of Indian groups largely focused on countries other than Russia. For this group the above mentioned weakness in Russia-India relations is a gift which they will use to criticise Russia and promote the interests of oth

Image credits- Flickr/ MEA India Sources- Russia & India Report (RIR) Does the Russian Government need to worry about the just-concluded visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the United States? This is not an easy question to answer, it seems. At first glance, the development of relations between India and the United States applies only to those two countries. Modi, as the leader of an independent and influential state, is free to make visits, meet with foreign politicians, and agree on India’s cooperation with other countries on the basis of national interests. Interests of partners may be considered, but they will always remain secondary. In Russia, however, not all agree. As columnist Dmitry Kosyrev wrote,“The main question many Russians are asking is with whom does India stand? The United States or Russia?” Although, it’s true that at the same time he observed that this question does not make sense. The Russian press also fervently responded to the

United States Secretary of State addressing a meeting at Delhi  (  Image credits- Wikimedia commons/ United States State Department) India is getting spoilt for choice and faces a problem of plenty, as major world powers woo the new Indian government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi; but Russia need not worry. The United States is trying its best to build bridges with the Narendra Modi government at a time when the West is staring down at a Cold War 2.0 scenario with Russia. America and European countries have slapped sanctions on various Russian companies for Moscow’s alleged role in the Ukrainian crisis and Russia has matched the fast and furious retaliation by banning all food imports from the West. While the Modi government is just about 75-days old, many momentous changes are likely to take place. More importantly, that time is going to start now. The big picture that is likely to emerge so far is that India will move very cautiously and consciously in managing its ties wi