UPSC foundations · Note 118
India and Russia: a longstanding partnership in a changing world
Study context: GS II — India and its neighbourhood — relations; bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India's interests; effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India's interests, Indian Diaspora.
India's relationship with Russia dates to the Soviet period. The Treaty of Peace, Friendship and Cooperation between India and the Soviet Union was signed in 1971, and the Soviet Union supported India on industrialisation, defence and space during the Cold War. After the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991, India and Russia signed a Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation in 1993 and declared a strategic partnership in 2000, later raised to a special and privileged strategic partnership. Defence, energy, science and space remain central pillars.
Defence cooperation is the most visible pillar. Russia has supplied a large share of India's military equipment over decades, including aircraft, submarines, tanks and air defence systems, and the two countries have jointly developed systems such as the BrahMos cruise missile with Russia. India has diversified its defence suppliers in recent years, buying equipment from the United States, France and Israel as well, but Russian-origin platforms still form a large part of India's inventory and require spares, maintenance and upgrades.
Energy cooperation has grown, including oil and gas supplies and nuclear power. Russia is building nuclear reactors at Kudankulam in Tamil Nadu, and India has invested in Russian oil and gas projects. Since 2022, India's purchases of discounted Russian oil have increased sharply, a choice India has defended as necessary for energy security and for protecting consumers from high prices, while Western countries have criticised it in the context of Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
The relationship faces a structural tension. Russia's growing closeness to China, India's main strategic rival, sits uneasily with India's partnerships with the United States, Japan and Australia in the Indo-Pacific. India has sought to keep the Russia relationship on its own terms, abstaining on several United Nations resolutions on Ukraine while calling for dialogue and diplomacy. The question for the future is whether a partnership built in the Cold War can be sustained when its partners' other alliances pull in opposite directions.
Key takeaways
- India and the Soviet Union signed a Treaty of Peace, Friendship and Cooperation in 1971; India and Russia declared a strategic partnership in 2000.
- Defence, energy, science and space are central pillars, including joint development of the BrahMos missile and Russian reactors at Kudankulam.
- Since 2022 India's purchases of Russian oil have increased, defended by India on energy security grounds amid Western criticism over Ukraine.
Why it matters for civil studies
India-Russia relations show how a Cold War partnership adapts: defence and energy ties persist even as both countries' other alliances change.
Think it through
Can India keep a privileged partnership with Russia while deepening security ties with the United States, or will it eventually have to choose?
From the Public Notes companion study collection. Editorial context and corrections.