Maintaining a balance between new and old friends has become a challenge for India amid changing global relationships and priorities.

Challenges from China, trade, and other issues are bringing India closer to the United States, and in such a situation, Russia is not getting close to India’s proximity to the West.

These new and old friends of India, the United States, and Russia, are at odds with each other. Both countries keep blaming each other.

Russia and the United States have been embroiled in controversy over allegations of Russian interference in the US presidential election, and a war has erupted between US President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Joe Biden said in an interview that he considered Putin “dangerous.” At the same time, he said Putin would have to pay the price for his alleged interference in the 2020 US election.

In response, Vladimir Putin challenged the US president on Russian TV to speak to him live.

He used poetry in Russian schools, which means “others look the same to us as we are.”

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Russia’s objections

US Secretary of State Lloyd Austin is visiting India from March 19. He has met Prime Minister Narendra Modi since his arrival.

The visit is expected to discuss the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad).

The United States, Japan, Australia, and India have formed a quad to address the challenges posed by China.

However, Russia has already expressed its displeasure over the quad. It has also threatened its own regional security.

The annual conference between Russia and India, which has been held for 20 years, was not held last year and the quad is also being considered as one of the reasons.

However, India and Russia attributed the absence of the conference to the Corona epidemic.

Addressing the Russian Council on Foreign Affairs in a video conference on December 8, the Russian foreign minister said Western countries were trying to weaken their close ties with India.

At the same time, the Russian military exercise with Pakistan has also caused Indian unrest.

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US pressure on India

The United States is skeptical of India’s purchase of the S400 missile system from Russia. A recent report by the Congressional Research Service of the US Congress has warned that The United States (CAATSA) may also impose sanctions on India over its multibillion-dollar deal to buy Russian-made S400 air defense systems.

However, the outgoing US ambassador, Juster, insisted that “we do not take action against friends under the CAATSA.”

India is a huge market for the United States for arms purchases whereas Russia has a 56 percent share of India’s arms purchases. Here, too, Russia poses a challenge to the United States.

Yet the United States and Russia are both important countries for India, but the challenge facing China, while the tension between Russia and the United States, makes it difficult for India to strike a balance at this stage.

A key Role of China

Dr. Harsh V. Pant, director of the Observer Research Foundation in New Delhi and professor of international relations at King’s College London, says that India has always maintained a balance between the two countries.

But there are fears that this could lead to further tensions in the future. Harsh Pant explained that in the changing scenario, the foreign policies and priorities of Russia, the United States, and India have changed.

“Russia is no longer what it used to be during the Cold War. For this, it is necessary that there be a country that stands by it. At the same time, feeling pressure from the West, Russia has adopted an anti-Western policy in which it sees China as its ally.”

India’s confrontation with China has divided the interests of India and Russia. China and India have a long-running border dispute. The armies of the two countries are facing each other. China and Pakistan remain a challenge for India.

In such a situation, the United States has emerged as a supportive country for India. With regard to China, the interests of both countries meet. In such a scenario, China has become a major factor in India’s relations with Russia and the United States.

India’s problem is that it has to go with both Russia and the United States. India also challenges the position of US superpower through Russia.

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India’s relationship with all these countries

India and Russia have a long history of trust and strong ties. It is a big country with which India has no major differences. Russia is a major arms exporter to India and has been doing so since the end of the Cold War.

Russia’s capability and experience in key and strategic areas such as defense, trade, energy, and space have been helpful to India.

At the same time, India’s relations with the United States are on many levels. The two countries have economic, trade, technology, immigration, energy, defense, and political partnerships. When it comes to national security, the United States stands with India on the issue of China and Pakistan currently.

Bilateral needs

Experts also believe that India’s relations with Russia and the United States cannot be unilateral. All parties have their own preferences.

“International relations are based on interests and they are subject to change,” says Harsh Pant. This is not the Cold War era. At the time, Russia and China also lived in different camps, but now the two appear together.

As for the United States, it has changed its foreign policy towards India since 2000. It is seen as a major market and strategic partner in India.

We can understand this from the changing attitudes of the United States towards Pakistan. There was also a nuclear deal with India in 2005, for which the United States amended the constitution. It has started giving priority to India.

The United States needs India’s cooperation in Afghanistan, Pakistan, China, terrorism, and trade.

Just as maintaining a balance between Russia and the United States is a challenge for India, so too will Russia and the United States not want to lose India as an ally. So it remains to be seen how these countries are able to adjust to changing priorities.

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