India-Russia Post Cold War Relations ─ A New Epoch of Cooperation

Post Cold War international relations have undeniably been a litmus test for the bilateral relations between India and Russia. With the emergence of a new international system, the foreign policies of both countries vacillated to explore new avenues of partnerships with other international players, an opportunity that otherwise proved effective to a large extent. National priorities and the geo-political architecture remodelled by the US, thus, compelled New Delhi and Moscow to pursue a foreign policy that moved away from serving the interests of each other. While defining the trends in the bilateral relations between the two countries, the strategic community has questioned whether the relationship can remain as special and strategic as it had been in the past. Are both countries still as relevant to one another as they once were?

As the constant debate revolves around these questions, the two entities have, however, indicated a certain level of distinguishing characteristics in order to address the complexities and challenges in the partnership and have acknowledged that their relationship is not only special but also indispensable. What has also continued to remain undamaged and an integral part of the bilateral relations is mutual trust, understanding and concern, thus, resulting in maturity and pragmatism, irrespective of the uncertainties that the two countries face. It is in this context, that the new stage in the bilateral relations between the two countries requires a thorough assessment. It stands to reason that with the developments that are taking place in the current international milieu, there is a need for India and Russia to reemphasise their strong strategic partnership, goodwill and diplomatic trust that have stood the test of time. This book undertakes a serious assessment of the strategic partnership in the contemporary international set up. The seven chapters of the book attempt to address the myriad challenges through detailed analyses and evaluation of the partnership between India and Russia in various spheres, including the political, defence, economic, nuclear, energy, science and technology, security, and strategic engagement.

Chandra Rekha is an Associate Fellow at the Centre for Air Power Studies (CAPS). Her maiden project in CAPS is on "India–Russia Post Cold War Relations: A New Epoch of Cooperation". She is also pursuing her Ph.D from the Centre for Russian and Central Asian Studies in Jawaharlal Nehru University. Her Ph.D research work is on "Revival of Russia’s Defence Industrial Complex, 2000-2014".