Diplomatist Magazine Diplomatist October 2019

SPECIAL REPORT the outbreak of civil war and chaos that persists till today. The most productive years In the intervening years till the Soviet Union’s collapse in 1991, relations between India and Russia proliferated, with the former receiving invaluable Russian assistance in the ﬁ eld of science and technology and of course, materiel. India’s steel plants in Bhilai and Bokaro, the thermal power plant in Neyveli, the antibiotics factory in Rishikesh, the Indian Institute of Technology at Mumbai and numerous other industrial, research and educational centres were established with Russian assistance. The ﬁ rst Indian satellite Aryabhata too was launched with Russian assistance in 1975 and Rakesh Sharma, the ﬁ rst Indian astronaut to travel into space, was a crew member of the Soviet spacecraft, Soyuz T-11 in 1984. Meanwhile, as enduring Russian assistance in the field of science and technology strengthened India’s economic foundations, collaboration in the defence arena from the early 1960s significantly boosted India’s ﬂ edgling military capabilities. Starting with MiG-21 ground attack ﬁ ghters and T-55 Main Battle Tanks, India has, over decades built up a massive inventory of Russian-origin military equipment through a combination of direct purchase and local licensed-manufacturing via technology transfer. It’s little wonder that over ﬁ ve decades later Russia continues to be India’s largest provider of arms and military technology transfer. During 2014-18, for instance, Russia accounted for 58 per cent of India’s total arms import, followed by Israel (15 per cent) and the USA (12 per cent). Bilateral defence ties received a boost under the August 1971 Indo-Soviet Treaty of Peace, Friendship and Co-operation. This pact was a critical factor that contributed to India’s victory in the conﬂ ict with Pakistan the same year, resulting in the creation of Bangladesh, a feat no other military had achieved- the creation of a new country. This treaty also proved beneﬁ cial In recent years, trade and economic cooperation has been emerging as a high-priority area. Consequently, the overall investment target of USD 30 billion set for 2025 was achieved in 2017 itself, necessitating an upward revision to USD 50 billion for the same period. 14 • Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Diplomatist • Vol 7 • Issue 10 • October 2019, Noida to Russia then in the throes the Cold War; it helped Moscow checkmate the USA, other western powers, and China in establishing their footprint in South Asia by propping up Pakistan. Thereafter, the follow-on phase of Indo- Russian cooperation, by now largely driven by defence commerce, survived the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan in 1979. But the Soviet Union’s collapse in 1989 and India’s ﬁ nancial crisis two years later threw up new challenges for the two countries. Both survived, albeit somewhat bruised, and went on to ink a new Treaty of Peace, Friendship and Cooperation in 1993 reaffirming their commitment to respecting each other’s sovereignty and interests, good neighbourliness and peaceful co-existence. The 1993 Treaty was succeeded by the Declaration on Strategic Partnership in 2000 that committed both countries to closer coordination in ensuring international peace and security and resolving pressing global and regional issues. In December 2010, the strategic partnership between the two countries was elevated to the level of a “Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership”. The present steering mechanism The India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission (IRIGC), set up in the wake of the 2000 Declaration, is the overarching mechanism that presently steers bilateral relations between the two countries. It is assisted by two groups: one deals with economic, scientiﬁ c, technological and cultural co-operation whilst the other is tasked with military-technical co-operation. Both groups meet annually alternating between the two capitals. The scope and importance of mutual defence cooperation between India and Russia can be gauged from the fact that there are two Working Groups and seven Sub-Groups under the overarching military-technical group. In 2008, a High-Level Monitoring Committee (HLMC) was set up to steer the military-technical cooperation, that was revised a decade later to promote military-to-military

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