Around 36 hours before Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to India, Prime Minister Narendra Modi while launching the development projects in Uttarakhand had asserted that India does not buckle under any pressure. The message was loud and clear! It was absolutely clear that though the message was being delivered from Dehradun, it was aimed at the US. The message was delivered in such a polite way that the US was too stunned to react!
To tell you the truth, a defence system stands trapped in the triangle between the US, India and Russia. Its name is S-400 air defence system. This air defence system made in Russia is like the US’ best air defense system called Patriot missile. It can destroy aircraft, cruise, ballistic missiles as well as hypersonic weapons. Apart from land, it can also be launched from the mobile platform of the Navy. China has purchased it from Russia but the US does not want Russia to sell it to any other country. The US has also made laws for this. Last year, under the same laws, it imposed heavy sanctions on Turkey and also cancelled the deal for 35 fighter jets. As India’s closeness with the US is increasing, all eyes were set on what would happen during Putin’s six-hour visit? But India sent a message, loud and clear, even before Putin landed in Delhi that “you are and will remain a reliable partner! We are not worried about anyone!” In fact, Russia has always supported India in every crisis. India gets 80 per cent of its weapons parts from Russia. We fly fighter planes of Russia. With the collaboration of Russia, the production of state-of-the-art AK 203 rifles is also going to start in India soon.
Now the world is astonished to see India execute such a smart move on the chessboard of foreign policy that while Russia is happy, the US is not in a position to do anything! If the US dares to impose sanctions on India like Turkey, it will have to face consequences. The US knows well that it will need India at every step against China. Pakistan is of no use to it now because it is dancing to the tune of China. So much so that it did not attend the 110-nation Democratic Summit convened by the US last week at the behest of China. The US knows that India is a strong nation in today’s geo-political situation. It is moving fast on the highway of progress. During the coronavirus period, India has shown its management ability and skills. Indian youth are dominating the whole world. Even the best CEOs of US companies are Indians. The Indian diaspora is spread all over the world. The most significant thing is that if China has to be stopped in the Indian Ocean, it is not possible without India’s support. Only India has the potential and power to stop the Chinese dragon. Hence, the US has no option other than strengthening the bond of friendship with India. The security partnership between the US and India has also increased in the last 15 years. India has also signed many arms deals with the US.
As a matter of fact, when the US and India came closer, Russia was upset and tried its best to ensure that India did not join the US camp. Russia, which is cementing its bond of friendship with China, was also upset as to why India joined the Quad along with the US, Japan and Australia? Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov even said India remains a pawn in the anti-China policy of Western countries in the Indo-Pacific region. Russian officials also raised the issue with national security adviser Ajit Doval, external affairs minister S Jaishankar and India’s foreign secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla but there was no reaction from India. Russia did not invite India in the initial meetings on the issue of Afghanistan but India made it realise that the Afghanistan imbroglio cannot be resolved without its involvement!
India’s policy has been crystal clear right from the beginning that it would not join any group of countries no matter how many of them are formed or dissolved in the world. This policy is from the time of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru who laid the foundation of the Non-Aligned Movement. Politically, closeness with Soviet Russia grew. The US made Pakistan its pawn and continued to support it for many decades. In India, irrespective of which party formed the government, whoever was the Prime Minister, everyone considered the interest of the country as paramount and formulated policies in the best interests of the country. Here I would like to narrate an incident told to me by former Prime Minister Inder Kumar Gujral. It happened when Gujral sahab used to be India’s ambassador to Russia. When Morarji Desai became Prime Minister, Gujral sahab resigned and returned to Delhi. When he went to meet Morarji Desai, the latter immediately asked him why he resigned. Gujral sahab said, “I resigned as I am aware of your pro-US policies.” Morarji Bhai asked him to continue as ambassador, and after some time Morarji Bhai’s government entered into many crucial agreements with Russia. You may remember how at the time of our crisis, the US humiliated us by supplying red rotten wheat. Upset, the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi immediately returned the wheat with a letter stating, “even the animals cannot eat this wheat here. If human beings in your country eat it, feed them!”
So, India has always kept its head high and never compromised with its self-respect. This is our tradition. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has carried on this tradition. None can browbeat us or look with evil eyes towards us. We know our strength and no one can bend us. We know, for sure, that Sare jahan se achha Hindustan hamara!
The author is the chairman, Editorial Board of Lokmat Media and former member of Rajya Sabha.
