By Ashish Singh
The joint statement following the 22nd India-Russia Summit and PM Modi’s visit to Moscow consists of 81 points, highlighting India-Russia relations and future directions. Questions have been raised about the Indian PM’s visit to Russia, given that India is also part of the Quad along with Australia, Japan, and the United States; is cooperating with several countries that have taken strong positions towards Russia; and is asking for dialogue and diplomacy to resolve the Russia-Ukraine crisis. In the global game of chess, India is worried about the increasing closeness of the Sino-Russian partnership, while Russia also wants to check the New Delhi-Washington ties. Experts argue that in the phase of sanctioned Russia, the ties between the two countries have taken a toll. However, one needs to understand that India-Russia relations are not new and have been time-tested. Abhay Kumar Singh, a native of Bihar and now an MLA from Kursk, Russia, representing Putin’s party United Russia, says, “We have to listen to what the Indian Prime Minister said here in Moscow. India-Russia relations are improving constantly. The opening of two new consulates in Kazan and Yekaterinburg is an example of this. India has followed a policy of non-alignment for a long time, and in order to do so, it is moving strategically. While many western countries are moving away from Russia, India is still getting oil at a cheaper price. Due to this, several countries are buying Russian oil from India. These are just examples to show that India-Russia ties have not weakened and will not.”
The joint statement also proposes to increase bilateral trade to USD 100 billion by 2030. Currently, it is near USD 65 billion, mainly due to imports of Russian oil to India. India seeks to increase exports to Russia to reach the desired goal in the coming years. For the past couple of years, Indian ministries have started to send Indian fruits to Russia. In the recently concluded “Mango Festival” in Lucknow, the provincial minister of state, Dinesh Pratap Singh, has affirmed the ministry’s commitment to exporting mangoes to Russia, which, according to the ministry, is likely to increase farmers’ income. A senior official of the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) told me that APEDA is planning to boost Indian agro-exports to Russia by arranging various B-2-B events like AAMRUS-2024. The first banana shipment to Russia was also sent in January 2024. Secondly, APEDA will also be participating in the WORLD-FOOD MOSCOW 2024 event in September to explore more opportunities in the Agro Area. Contrary to how promising these plans may look, a medium-scale exporter from India says that we should consider the cost of such exports laid upon the individuals and companies willing to export agro-products to Russia. For one kilogram of mango, the cost reaches about Rs 833, whereas Egyptian mangoes are sold in the Russian retail market for about 400 rupees per kg. India produces mangoes for 3–4 months, while Egypt produces them for 5–6 months. A similar situation is visible when it comes to bananas.
A high-ranking official from the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare says that due to the Russia-Ukraine war, things have got difficult. Abhay Kumar Singh responds to it by saying that many western countries do not want this war to end, with an emphasis on the fact that as the government changes are visible in the UK, France, and most likely the US, the situation will change.
The Joint Statement also talks about academic collaboration between the two countries. Yevgeny Ivanov, a lecturer at the Higher School of Economics (HSE), Moscow, says that Russia follows the USSR model of welcoming students from different countries. Russia plans to become a global centre of international education, along with the US, China, the UK, and France. HSE and IIM, Indore, have already started a centre in India, and as Russian scientists are looking for access to the global academic market, close cooperation between Russia and India is bound to happen. Ivan Botov (a former student of HSE) asserts that India and Russia have historically had warm relations. India is a growing economy with a strong technical background and developing industry that pursues a strategic multi-vector policy, making it a suitable ally for Russia. Russia is also moving away from the Bologna system (bachelor’s and master’s degrees) and returning to the specialty that existed in Soviet times (5 years of education). Russia is also looking for new ideas for reforming its educational system; here, cooperation with India can also be useful.
Having witnessed several storms in their journeys, India and Russia seem to have understood the need for fruitful cooperation. The Joint Statement is merely a mirror to show the path; together both countries still have miles to go.
(Ashish Singh is a social and political scientist.)
