Hannah Ellis-Petersen -
Guardian
While most global powers have been roundly damning of Vladimir Putin’s actions in
Ukraine, India’s response has been somewhat muted – a reflection of the diplomatic dilemma that the country now finds itself in: torn between Russia and the west.
As the Guardian’s south east Asia correspondent Hannah Ellis-Petersen writes, hours after Putin’s invasion began, the Indian prime minister, Narendra Modi, was among the first to call the Russian president, calling for a “cessation” of violence, but steering clear of directly condemning his actions. India’s top diplomat at the UN was equally evasive, expressing “regret” at the invasion, and calling for “urgent de-escalation of tensions”.
India currently relies on Russia for around 60%-70% of their arms and military hardware, which are crucial at a time when they are engaged in a frosty stand-off with China along their border. India recently purchased a missile defence system from
Russia and relies on it for essential spare parts for defence machinery.
Putin made a visit to India as recently as December 2021, one of the only countries the Russian President has travelled to during the pandemic, a sign of the close ties between the two countries. India also relies on Russia for vital supplies of fertiliser, and the severe sanctions on Russia could severely impact Indian farming and industry.
On Friday, the Russian chargé d’affaires in Delhi, Roman Babushkin, said that they “expect our Indian partners to support Russia” at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) when a resolution opposing the military Russian operation against Ukraine will come up for a vote. India is expected to abstain.
India’s relatively neutral position is likely to anger the US, another ally of the Indian government. In a call to the Indian foreign minister S Jaishankar on Thursday, US secretary of state Antony Blinken urged a “strong collective response”.
But the request was met with derision by a ministry of information spokesperson, Kanchan Gupta, who in a mocking tweet questioned why India should back the US position when they had taken “consistently anti-India positions at the UN...yet you want India’s help”.
The Ukrainian ambassador to India, Igor Polikha, pleaded with Modi to use his influence with Russia to restrain Putin’s actions, calling it a “moment of destiny”.
Talking to India media, Polikha said:
I don’t know how many world leaders Putin may listen to, but the stature of Modi makes me hopeful. We are waiting, asking, pleading for the assistance of India.
Updated at 9.54am EST