Russia-India On Shaky Grounds? Why India Needs To Become Truly Independent

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Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, twice in a matter of weeks, has indicated that Russia is interested in reviving the RIC (Russia-India-China) under the Troika format.
Russia is one of India's longest-serving partners. During the Cold War, the Soviet Union signed a treaty of Friendship with India, which ultimately became the foundation of the relationship between both countries. After decades of trade and cultural exchange, a sense of camaraderie has developed between the citizens of both nations.
However, Russia's recent actions have raised eyebrows. First of which is the acknowledgement that US President Donald Trump played a personal and pivotal role in negotiating a ceasefire between India and Pakistan, a claim that India has vehemently denied.
The second action is a bit more complex and is rolled up in history, international relations and regional tensions. Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, now twice in a matter of weeks, has indicated that Russia is 'genuinely' interested in reviving the RIC (Russia-India-China) under the Troika format.
The Kremlin's public endorsement of Trump's assertion that he personally brokered a ceasefire between India and Pakistan following Operation Sindoor has landed a discordant note in New Delhi.
Russian President Vladimir Putin's aide, Yury Ushakov, stated that the India-Pakistan conflict was resolved through Trump's 'personal involvement", a claim repeatedly echoed by Trump himself, who even suggested he averted a nuclear disaster by leveraging US trade access as a bargaining tool.
India, however, has consistently and vehemently denied any third-party mediation. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar firmly rejected these claims, clarifying that the cessation of hostilities on 10 May occurred through direct communication via a hotline, initiated by the Pakistani army.
Similarly, Shashi Tharoor, leading an all-party delegation to the US, unequivocally stated that India had 'never particularly wanted to ask anyone to mediate," stressing that mediation implies an equivalence between parties, which India rejects between a state fostering terrorism and a multi-party democracy exercising its right to self-defence.
Russia's alignment with a narrative that undermines India's sovereignty and strategic autonomy on such a sensitive security matter casts a shadow over their long-standing partnership. Adding to it, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval has also cancelled his planned trip to Russia.
Russia's Persistent Call Reviving a Dormant Troika
Against this backdrop, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's repeated calls for the revival of the Russia-India-China (RIC) troika, citing significantly eased tensions between New Delhi and Beijing, appear left field.
The RIC format, established in 1996 to challenge US unipolarity, has been largely dormant since the deadly Galwan Valley clashes in June 2020. Russia perceives its revival as a step towards a multi-polar architecture and pan-Eurasian processes. Lavrov has expressed that Russia has a genuine interest in resuming ministerial-level meetings, asserting that 'an understanding has been reached between India and China on how to ease the situation on the border".
Why the RIC Troika is Problematic for India
Lavrov's assessment of eased tensions, however, stands in stark contrast to India's ground reality. India's Army Chief, General Upendra Dwivedi, recently affirmed that border tensions persist, with a 'degree of standoff" remaining and India maintaining its troop deployments along the Line of Actual Control, which indicates a clear lack of trust for China.
And he has been proven right. China's actions during the recent India-Pakistan conflict exposed a chilling dimension of the China-Pakistan nexus. Pakistan extensively employed Chinese weapon systems and manufactured jets in its retaliation, attacking Indian soil.
China provided significant strategic aid, including helping Pakistan reorganise its radar and air defence systems and adjusting satellite coverage over India during the critical 15-day period from the Pahalgam massacre to the start of large-scale fighting. This level of logistical and intelligence support is akin to being an accessory to a murder. It has led to a deep erosion of trust in India, cementing a two-front situation in its strategic planning.
Furthermore, China continues its territorial assertiveness with claims over Arunachal Pradesh and renaming 27 places as recently as May 2025, a move India calls preposterous and an attempt to alter undeniable reality.
In addition, Beijing's consistent blocking of India's proposals at the UN Security Council to ban Pakistan-based terrorists implicated in major attacks against India, including the Pahalgam terror attack and 26/11, further highlights its deep-seated strategic alignment with India's primary adversary.
For India, China's actions during the conflict, despite recent limited diplomatic thaws, underscore a paradoxical reality where attempts at normalisation are undermined by a deep-seated strategic alignment with a terror state fundamentally rendering any genuine cooperation impossible and solidifying the relationship as one of strategic rivalry.
India's Path to True Independence
India's foreign policy has long been characterised by strategic autonomy, a delicate balancing act that Russia often misconstrues, particularly regarding India's participation in the Quad. While Russia's Foreign Minister Lavrov has alleged that the US and Quad are coercing India into anti-China military operations, India maintains that Quad is a diplomatic partnership for maritime security and a free and open Indo-Pacific, not a military alliance targeting China.
India's neutrality on the Russia-Ukraine conflict, including abstaining from UN resolutions, and Prime Minister Modi's concurrent engagements with both Western and Russian leaders, underscore its commitment to multi-alignment rather than outright alliance with any single power bloc. India has continued to buy crude oil despite sanctions on the sale of Russian Crude oil, underlining the relationship that both these nations share.
Despite Russia retaining a degree of strategic trust and remaining a key defence supplier, the recent diplomatic gaffes and the push for a problematic RIC revival might force India to re-evaluate its foreign policy foundations.
China's continued support for Pakistan's military capabilities and its diplomatic protection of Pakistan-based terrorist organisations means that the India-China relationship cannot evolve beyond a transactional one, fraught with underlying tensions. While economic interdependence with China is substantial, highlighted by a significant trade deficit and reliance on Chinese components, India's strategic imperatives, including managing a potential two-front situation, necessitate strengthening diverse partnerships, especially in its South-South axis.
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Russia's actions are jarring, from endorsing a disputed ceasefire narrative to advocating a troika with an actively hostile China. It pushes India to prioritise its own security and strategic interests with even greater determination. India must continue to strengthen partnerships with countries across the Indo-Pacific, Europe, and the Southern Hemisphere, and position itself as a leader of the Global South. India's challenge now is to navigate this complex geopolitical landscape by becoming truly independent, resisting global geopolitical headwinds that compromise its core security interests, and forging a path ensuring its long-term stability and growth.
Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18's views.
About the Author
Sohil Sinha
Sohil Sinha is a Sub Editor at News18. He writes on foreign affairs, geopolitics along with domestic policy and infrastructure projects.
tags :
india-china relationship India-Russia relations
Location :
New Delhi, India, India
First Published:
June 10, 2025, 17:19 IST
News opinion Opinion | Russia-India On Shaky Grounds? Why India Needs To Become Truly Independent