*Paromita Das
The ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict remains a key point of focus as the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue member countries meet in Tokyo, Japan.
However, even as the four QUAD members, Australia, India, Japan, and the United States, consider the months-long aggression, India has yet to take any action against Russia.
Why has India not publicly condemned Moscow’s actions or imposed sanctions on the aggressor?
India has long-standing ties with Russia, particularly in the defense sector. During a visit to the United States in April, India’s finance minister, Nirmala Sitharaman, stated that the country would like to be a “good friend” to Western countries. but that it does not want to be weakened and must ensure its security.
Experts believe that the South Asian country intends to maintain its long-standing reliance on Russia.
How reliant on Russia is India?
The country’s rivalry with neighbouring Pakistan has long influenced its position as one of the world’s largest buyers of weapons. China’s growing power in the region has exacerbated India’s concerns.
According to the BBC, Russia has supplied nearly two-thirds of India’s military equipment since 1992. According to the Stimson Center, a US-based research organization, Russian weapons could account for up to 85 percent of New Delhi’s weapon systems.
While India has attempted to diversify its weapon supplies by purchasing from France, Israel, the United Kingdom, and the United States, Moscow remains a major supplier.
Despite these new alliances, India has yet to join the international condemnation of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Among the QUAD members, the United States has been at the forefront of condemning Moscow and imposing harsh sanctions, with Japan and Australia quickly following suit. Nonalignment has long been practiced in India. Despite the fact that its close relationship with the US on the one hand and Russia on the other puts it in an awkward position, India maintains its status quo.
The country has successfully avoided becoming embroiled in conflicts between superpowers while retaining its sovereignty.
This is not to say that India has remained silent as the conflict in Ukraine has raged on. Even though it has not explicitly condemned Moscow, the country has made some pointed remarks.
T S Tirumurti, India’s permanent representative to the United States, referred to maintaining respect for territorial integrity and sovereignty of nations as key principles of global order in his remarks on Ukraine at the UN Security Council on February 27. During phone conversations with Ukraine’s land neighbors, the Slovak Republic and Romania, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi echoed this sentiment.
However, as Russia and China grow closer, it remains to be seen whether India’s foreign policy will change.
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