Updated: June 23, 2020 6:53:02 PM
Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2012 with Xi Jinping (then Vice President) of China in Beijing. The two countries have grown closer in the last few decades. (Express Archive)
Russia has suddenly emerged as a major diplomatic player amid tensions between India and China.
* On Tuesday, Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov hosts the Russia-India-China (RIC) tripartite foreign ministers meeting, the first opportunity for each other to meet face to face between Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. Will happen. video conference. Jaishankar and Wang, who are also Chinese state councilors, were angered by the June 17 closure of the border on June 15, in which 20 Indian soldiers killed.
* Will go to moscow on wednesday Host Defense Minister Rajnath Singh And his Chinese counterpart, Wei Fenghe, who will participate in the Victory Day parade along with Indian and Chinese marching contestants on 24 June.
While these are ministerial level engagements, India and Russia have at least two outreach via diplomatic channels.
* Earlier this month, before 6 June Lt General level talks between India and China, Foreign Secretary Harshavardhan Shringla “Update” on Russian Ambassador Nikolay Kudashev “Recent developments” on the situation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).
* Following a skirmish between Indian and Chinese troops in the Galavan Valley on 15 June, Indian Ambassador to Russia De Bala Venkatesh Verma held talks with Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Igor Morgulov on 17 June. Officials discussed regional security, including developments on the actual line. India and China border control in the Himalayas, ”the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a brief statement. The Government of India did not issue any statement on this.
Why does it matter
While India and China are talking to each other – and not to each other – the outreach for Moscow is notable.
It is widely known that Russia and China have increased their relationship over the years. The Moscow – Beijing axis is important, especially since Washington has been on loggerheads with China in recent months and Russia has been highly calibrated, even in its response to the Kovid-19 outbreak.
New Delhi believes that America’s attitude towards both Western countries, especially Moscow and Beijing, has brought them even closer.
Russia responded to matters around China
Initial friction
Russia and China have given a strong start to their relationship after Maotse Tung founded the People’s Republic of China. When Mao made his first visit to Moscow after winning control of China in 1949, he had to wait weeks for a meeting with the Soviet leader. An article in the Smithsonian magazine stated, “He spent several weeks cooling his heels in a remote drain outside Moscow, where the sole was a recreational facility.”
During the Cold War, China and the USSR were rivals after the Sino-Soviet split in 1961, competing for control of the worldwide communist movement. There was a serious possibility of a major war in the early 1960s and a brief border war in 1969. This hostility began to subside after Mao’s death in 1976, but relations were not very good until the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991.
Fencing
In the post-Cold War era, economic relations created a “new strategic basis” for Sino-Russian relations. China is Russia’s largest trading partner and the largest Asian investor in Russia. China sees Russia as a raw material powerhouse and a growing market for its consumer goods.
After the destruction of Crimea through harsh sanctions in 2014, the West’s attitude towards Russia brought Moscow very close to China. And India, for its part, has always felt that it was the West that has pushed Russia towards Beijing’s tight embrace.
The Sino-Russian quasi-coalition has formed in recent years, and this has been made possible by anti-Chinese rhetoric from Washington, falling oil prices and Russia’s increasing dependence on sugar consumption.
Western analysts see it as a “facilitating friendship” between two countries – by Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and China’s President Xi Jinping.
Russia has done a lot of calibration in its statements on the issues on which Beijing is most susceptible: Huawei’s 5G rollout, Hong Kong and the Kovid-19 epidemic (see box).
However, Beijing and Moscow do not always interact with each other. China is not recognized by Crimea as part of Russia and Moscow formally takes a neutral stand on Beijing’s claims in the South China Sea.
ExplainSpeaking | Have Sino-Indian relations slipped into mutual suspicion?
Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Chinese President Xi Jinping. (Ap photo / file)
India and Russia
India has a historical relationship with Russia over seven decades.
While relations have grown in some areas and atrophied in some others, the defense basket is the strongest pillar of the strategic partnership.
Although New Delhi has consciously diversified its new purchases from other countries, the bulk of its defense equipment is from Russia. Estimates say that 60 to 70 percent of India’s supplies are from Russia, and New Delhi needs a regular and reliable supply of spare parts from the Russian defense industry. In fact, Prime Minister Modi has held an informal summit with only two leaders – Xi and Putin.
India has taken this decision not only to leave Russia out of choice, but out of necessity, as it believes that Moscow has the advantage and influence to shape and change Beijing’s strict stance on the border issue.
At the moment when there is tension on the border, Defense Minister Singh will discuss the supply and purchase of new defense systems – such as the S-400 missile defense system – with Russian top brass in military and government.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Vladivostok, Russia on September 4, 2019. (ANI photo)
Russia’s situation, then and now
During the Doklam crisis in 2017, Russian diplomats in Beijing were briefed by the Chinese government. At that time, it was placed under the cover.
While Russia’s position during the 1962 war was not particularly in support of India, New Delhi takes comfort in Moscow’s support during the 1971 war.
Tuesday’s RIC Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, which was held in March, would be the first opportunity for Jaishankar and Wang Yi to join that tripartite format.
Asked on the possibility of discussing Indo-China tensions, Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov said last week: “The agenda does not include discussing issues that concern the bilateral relations of a country with another member of this draft Are related. “
On Galvan events, Moscow responded in a very calibrated manner last week. On 17 June, Russian Ambassador Kudashev tweeted, “We welcome all the steps aimed at de-escalation in LAC, including the interaction between the two FMs, and remain optimistic.” He had said: “The existence of RIC is an undisputed reality, firmly fixed on the world map. For the current phase of tripartite cooperation, there are no indications that it may be frozen. “
According to Russian news agency TASS, presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the Kremlin has a confrontation between the army on the border between China and India, but believes that the two countries can resolve the conflict themselves.
“Of course, we are watching very closely what is happening on the Chinese-Indian border. We believe this is a very dangerous report, ”said Peskov. “But we believe that both countries are capable of taking the necessary steps to prevent such situations in the future and to ensure that the region has predictability and stability and that it is a safe region for nations. First, China And India. “
A Kremlin spokesman stressed that China and India are close allies and allies to Russia, and “have very close and mutually beneficial relationships built on mutual respect”.
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