This week has been rich in terms of further development of Russian-Indian cooperation across the board. Particularly, it saw a number of high-ranking Russian government officials visiting New Delhi. First of them was Russian Security Council Secretary Nikolai Patrushev, right after him arrived Chairman of the State Duma Vyacheslav Volodin and finally, on Thursday Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu completed his two-day visit to New Delhi. And all of them enjoyed a warm and hearty welcome, including that from Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The hospitable reception of high-ranking Russian officials in the Indian capital is quite understandable, since the current relations between Moscow and New Delhi appear as a privileged strategic partnership, as has been repeatedly noted by both Russian President Vladimir Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Each of the Russian visitors to New Delhi had their own tasks, which is quite explicable. For example, Nikolai Patrushev's talks with Ajit Doval, National Security Advisor to Prime Minister of India, focused on jointly fighting international terrorism, as well as regional challenges of mutual concern, including the situation in Afghanistan. In a conversation with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Nikolai Patrushev discussed a variety of issues of Russian-Indian cooperation. The head of Russia’s Security Council referred to the rich and open political dialogue as an integral part of the Russian-Indian strategic partnership.
The two-day visit of State Duma Chairman Vyacheslav Volodin began with laying a wreath at the Cremation Memorial of Mahatma Gandhi, the leader of the Indian independence movement against the British rule. Moreover, Volodin visited the Russian-Indian joint defense enterprise BrahMos Aerospace Limited. After that Volodin met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, to whom he conveyed greetings from Russian President Vladimir Putin. Needless to say that he had talks with heads of the upper and lower chambers of the Indian parliament Venkaiah Naidu and Sumitra Mahajan. Vyacheslav Volodin's meetings in New Delhi focused on the prospects for strengthening parliamentary interaction between Russia and India, as well as regional and international agendas. It stands to reason that during his visit he took part in the fifth meeting of the Russian-Indian Inter-Parliamentary Commission.
According to Volodin, in 2017 the trade turnover between India and Russia increased by 21%, and this year – by 17.6%, which is equivalent to more than 10 billion dollars. However, the State Duma Chairman believes this is far from the level India and Russia could come to. "As you know, the potential for cooperation is much higher. We should strive to ensure that it grows more effectively," the politician stressed, pointing to the increase of tourist traffic which could also demonstrate better figures.
And it is hard to disagree with Vyacheslav Volodin, since the level of trade and economic relations between Moscow and New Delhi is still not high enough and cannot suit both sides. They do successfully cooperate, namely in the nuclear industry. A perfect example is the Kudankulam nuclear power plant being constructed by Russian specialists in India.
Incidentally, this aspect was also emphasized by Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov when addressing the Russian-Indian forum in Moscow last Thursday. "If we talk about the practical factors of our cooperation, I would especially like to underscore nuclear energy," Morgulov said. He also stressed that the two countries are strengthening cooperation in solar energy, geological surveys and hydrocarbon exploration and production on Russia's continental shelf.
However, another key factor in Russian-Indian relations apart from the political aspect is military and technical cooperation, which accounts for the bulk of trade between Russia and India. And the just-completed visit of Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu to New Delhi merely confirmed this.
No other country in the world cooperates with India as close as Russia. The level of trust between the two is unprecedented, including the crucial area of defense. "The interaction of the general staffs and military branches of the armed forces is strengthening, the exchange of military delegations is expanding and work is being carried out in the sphere of military education," Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said at a meeting with his Indian counterpart Nirmala Sitharaman.
Moreover, speaking at the 18th Russian-Indian intergovernmental commission on military and technical cooperation, Shoigu noted that despite pressure coming from several states, the parties signed a large package of documents and landmark contracts to supply the S-400 Triumph anti-aircraft missile systems and Project 11356 frigates. The former was signed by Vladimir Putin during his visit to India in October this year with the contract value estimated at 5.43 billion dollars. In late November it has transpired that India is buying four frigates as well. The deal assumes a 2+2 format with two ships built by Russia's Yantar plant and the rest assembled at Indian entities.
It is of importance to note that in recent years the Russian-Indian military and technical cooperation has sought to overcome the "seller-buyer" level. Joint development and production of military equipment became a priority. The Sukhoi Su-30MKI (NATO name: Flanker-H) and T90s tanks are produced under a Russian license in India, and the first quarter of the coming year will witness the signing of a contract to launch manufacturing of Kamov Ka-226T helicopters. All of this accounts for billions of dollars.
I'd like to make a pointed reference to one more aspect: during his visit to new Delhi, Sergei Shoigu and his Indian counterpart Nirmala Sitharaman signed an agreement to establish a military cooperation working group. In fact, the intergovernmental commission on military and technical cooperation is going to engage in various types of military interaction, not just hardware alone.
It would be appropriate to recall here that over the 60 years of Russian-Indian military and technical cooperation Moscow provided New Delhi with defense products worth 65 billion dollars, according to Rosoboronexport. The countries are also conducting about 100 research and development projects. No wonder that during his visit to India the Russian Defense Minister said the following: "Military and technical cooperation between our countries is the key component of the privileged strategic partnership." He also stressed that "regular meetings of the leaders of our countries, the latest of which took place in Buenos Aires, provide a vivid proof of constructive bilateral relations."
Sergei Shoigu's latest visit to India has made it clear that New Delhi is not afraid of Western sanctions and American threats but stands ready to further develop military and technical cooperation with Russia.
