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OpINION DECEMBER 31, 2021 | The Indian Eye 14
in Tajikistan in 2016. This has been ica’s Adversaries Through Sanctions
considerably expanded in the wake Act (CAATSA).
of the takeover of Afghanistan by the Afghanistan was a major subject
Taliban in August 2021. Enhanced of bilateral deliberations between
India–Russia collaboration in Cen- Modi and Putin, as also during the
tral Asia will be a win-win proposi- 2+2 dialogue. There have been dif-
tion not only for these two countries ferences in the perspectives of the
but also for the Central Asian States two sides on Afghanistan over the
who want to protect their sovereign- last several years. Russia was actively
ty from Chinese dominance. engaging with the Taliban and had
Russia’s Far East has the po- also established some dialogue for-
tential to emerge as an important mats at which it did not invite India.
area of bilateral cooperation. This The ground situation changed dras-
region is extremely well endowed tically in mid-August 2021 when the
with natural and mineral resources. Taliban took over Kabul and gave no
It covers about 40 per cent of Rus- indication of abiding by its commit-
sia’s land area but accounts for only ments of forming an inclusive gov-
per cent of the Russian population. ernment, respecting the rights of mi-
It urgently needs investment and norities as well as of the women and
trained manpower. PM Modi had children, and not allowing its terri-
extended a Line of Credit of US$ tory to be used for terrorist attacks
1 billion during his visit to Vladivo- against neighbors. Currently, there
stok in 2019 to explore opportuni- India has begun to receive the S-400 missile system from Russia (ANI) is near-complete convergence on the
ties for greater Indian engagement viewpoints of India and Russia on
with that region.5 The Chief Minis- the way forward in Afghanistan. This
ters of four Indian States, viz., Uttar is extensively reflected in the Joint
Pradesh, Haryana, Goa and Gujarat, Declaration.
as well as the Indian Commerce and The one jarring note was the
Industry Minister, Piyush Goyal, rather aggressive criticism by Rus-
had travelled to the region before sian Foreign Minister Sergey Lav-
Prime Minister Modi’s visit in 2019 rov of the Indo-Pacific (he called it
to explore possibilities of enhancing a ‘slogan’), non-inclusive alliances,
co-operation. In the post-pandemic AUKUS, etc. in his press conference
period, this region beckons strongly after the meeting. The propriety
for greater Indian engagement. This of such combative statements and
would be particularly welcome for also of open criticism of the US on
Russia due to the lurking danger of CAATSA from Indian soil is highly
Chinese expansionism which appears questionable. This is in spite of the
to have increased in recent years, go- fact that Putin has shown under-
ing by the sinister comments in some standing of India’s position on the
sections of the Chinese social media Indo-Pacific and the Quad.
after the celebration of Vladivostok President Putin’s short but high-
Day by the Russian Embassy in Bei- ly consequential visit and the launch
jing last year. of the 2+2 format have imbued new
The Arctic is another region dynamism into the bilateral part-
where both sides can collaborate for nership. There might be a few ar-
mutual benefits. President Putin had eas of divergence between the two
extended an invitation to India to col- sides but spheres of convergence are
laborate on Arctic during PM Modi’s much greater. These will continue to
visit in 2019. The region is extremely navigate the bilateral partnership to
rich in mineral resources including make it more robust and vigorous in
hydrocarbons and fossil fuels. It also the coming days.
faces risk of increased Chinese pres-
ence which has declared itself as a Ashok Sajjanhar is President, Insti-
‘Near Arctic State’ although no such tute of Global Studies, and a former
concept exists in the Constitution of External Affairs Minister Dr. S Jaishankar and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov Ambassador of India to Kazakhstan,
the Arctic Council. The India–Rus- greet each other with the elbow bump as they meet prior to the inaugural India-Russia 2+2 Sweden and Latvia.
sia Joint Statement refers to the po- Ministerial Dialogue in New Delhi (ANI) Views expressed are of the author and
tential of cooperation between the do not necessarily reflect the views of
two countries in this area. the Manohar Parrikar IDSA or of the
In the face of the huge flux in the sis and accession of Crimea to Rus- China on the northern land frontier
global security and economic archi- sia in 2014. It has also moved closer as well as in the Indian Ocean. As Government of India.
tecture in recent years, India–Russia to Pakistan for establishing a direct evidence of the strategic autonomy This is the abridged version of the
ties have demonstrated remarkable connect with the Taliban, and for ex- exercised by India, it has imported article which appeared first in the
resilience. Russia has gone deep into ploring greater military and econom- five units of the S-400 Triumf ballistic Comment section of the website (www.
the embrace of China as a result of ic opportunities in Pakistan. India missile defense system, worth more idsa.in) of Manohar Parrikar Institute
sanctions imposed by the US and the has moved closer to the US on ac- than US$ 5 billion, notwithstanding for Defense Studies and Analyses, New
West in the wake of the Ukraine cri- count of the threat it confronts from the US threat of Countering Amer- Delhi on December 16, 2021
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