BEIJING: Chinese state media has warned Narendra Modi’s Indian governmentthat close ties between Russia and Pakistan has the ‘potential forcompletely changing the balance of power in the region and could lead toNew Delhi getting isolated’.
In an opinion piece published in Global Times, Sawraj Singh, chairman ofWashington State Network for Human Rights stated: “It is evident thatRussia and China are coming closer. However, a new element is adding up inthis matrix: Russia and Pakistan are also moving closer to each other.”
“India should not forget that friendship with Russia is one of its greatestassets. However, India has never fully appreciated the value of thisfriendship. Even in those days when Indo-Soviet friendship was at the peakand for all practical purposes they were allies, India continued to leantoward the US and the West.”
“The Indo-Soviet friendship treaty of 1971 was the main reason for bringingthe US, China and Pakistan together. This development was one of the mainreasons for the Soviet defeat in Afghanistan and eventual collapse of theUSSR. India wasted no time after the collapse of the Soviet Union andjumped into the American camp, completely ignoring the concept of “a friendin need is a friend indeed.” It left an impression on Russians that Indiais a fair-weather friend.”
Recently, Pakistan signed an agreement with Russia for training of troopsat Russian military schools as a sign of policy shift from US camp.
Giving historical context of Indian diplomacy and Russian policy, thewriter noted that New Dehli has shown inclination towards West and has notlearned the lesson.
“Moscow had a very bitter experience with the US when former presidentBoris Yeltsin tried to take Russia to the American camp. However, Indiadoes not want to learn from the Russian experience. When it comes to beinga fair-weather friend only, India will have a hard time breaking theAmerican record. Only after this bitter experience with America, RussianPresident Vladimir Putin decided to mend fences with China. Friendship withChina has played a very important role in restoring Russia’s status as animportant player in world affairs.”
“The big question is: why does India not want to accept the obvious, thatrelatively, America and Western countries are in a state of decline. Onereason is that old habits and perceptions are difficult to change. Becauseof Western domination of the last two centuries, almost all third-worldcountries believe that the West cannot really decline because the whiterace and the West are inherently superior.”
“In India’s case, the situation is made worse by the fact that before theWestern invasion of the country, there was an Islamic invasion which lastedfor 1,000 years. Some Indians mistakenly believe that Westerners liberatedthem from Islamic servility. This led us to develop a soft corner for theWest and Westerners.”
Unfortunately, we started looking at the invaders, oppressors andexploiters as our liberators. This clouds our judgment as not only are wenot seeing the obvious, but we do not want to see the end of Westerndomination. Like it or not, Western domination and American hegemony aregoing to end very soon, and the balance of power is going to shift from theWest to the East.
America and the West have already reached their peak and have lost momentumand spirit to carry on the struggle needed to keep them at the top.Moreover, they have also lost the tenacity, resilience and ability toendure suffering. All these elements are needed to maintain your status andto come out victorious in the long run.
India should seriously reflect upon and reconsider its policies in light ofthe new developments. If a partnership among Russia, China and Pakistancomes into existence, India can be the biggest loser. India should alsoremember that another friend, Iran, is likely to join this partnership,adding to India’s isolation in the region.
India has to learn to value its friendship with Russia and do everything torevive it. New Delhi should also try to understand that for all practicalpurposes, Russia and China have become strategic partners. Therefore, ifIndia is perceived to be a part of American efforts to isolate and containChina, Russia won’t like it because Moscow also sees itself as a victim ofsuch American efforts.
India needs friendly relations with Russia and cordial relations withAmerica. India also needs working relations with China because Beijing isthe main force in the institutions emerging in the place of decliningWestern institutions. India has to work with China in BRICS, the ShanghaiCooperation Organization and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.Moreover, India and China have to march together to Asia’s century.