Question

Critically explain the relations between India and the Soviet Union (Russia) after the Cold War.

Answer 1

Step 1: Continuity from the Soviet era:
India and the USSR shared a close 'special relationship' during the Cold War, anchored in the 1971 Indo-Soviet Treaty of Peace, Friendship and Cooperation, defence supplies, and diplomatic support (e.g. on Kashmir at the UN).

Step 2: Adjustment after 1991:
The USSR's collapse in 1991 forced India to recalibrate ties with Russia, its successor state, at a time when Russia itself was economically weakened and reorienting toward the West.

Step 3: Continued strategic partnership:
Despite this transition, India-Russia relations were formalised as a 'Strategic Partnership' in 2000, later upgraded to a 'Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership' in 2010, covering defence, energy (including nuclear cooperation), and space.

Step 4: Defence dependence:
Russia has remained India's largest source of military hardware — fighter aircraft, submarines, and missile systems — and holds annual bilateral summits with India.

Step 5: Critical assessment:
However, the relationship has faced strain: Russia's growing closeness to China and Pakistan, India's deepening ties with the USA, and India's need to diversify defence imports away from over-reliance on a single supplier have all introduced new complexity into a once-exclusive partnership.