India-Russia relations have gone through a number of phases since their formal establishment in April 1947. Despite repeated projections of its decline following the end of the Cold War, India and Russia’s strategic partnership has persisted, and indeed in some areas has deepened. This brief argues that this could only mean that there is plausible geopolitical logic for both countries to persevere in strengthening their ties. It gives a historical account of the partnership, analyses its continued relevance for both countries, and ponders the impact of current geopolitical patterns on this relationship. Attribution: Nandan Unnikrishnan and Ankita Dutta, “Tracing the Strategic Dimensions of India-Russia Relations,” ORF Special Report No. 217 , November 2023, Observer Research Foundation. Defense diplomacy economy India India-Russia Nehru Russia USSR Historical Overview India and USSR established formal diplomatic relations in April 1947, four months before India’s independence. [1] Early diplomatic relations were negligible, perhaps understandably so as Premier Joseph Stalin regarded the bourgeoisie of colonial and dependent countries as “conciliatory” and “counter-revolutionary” forces entering “a conspiracy” with imperialism behind the backs of their own peoples. [2] This began to change towards the end of his life, and in his final years, two of the three ambassadors he received were Indian. [3] The year 1955 was key for India-USSR relations, with then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru visiting Moscow in June 1955 and Nikita Khrushchev conducting a reciprocal visit in November 1955. These two visits would set the pace of the relations for the next three decades. India-USSR relations could broadly be described as having stood on five pillars.
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