Moscow:

With its lack of trust in the West, Russia is planning to build stronger ties with India among other countries. Accusing the United States of instigating global conflicts and sinking crucial Cold War arms control treaties, Russia’s Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov said it is “impossible” for Moscow to place a “minimum level of trust” in the West. 

Claiming that any effort to reach a meaningful agreement on arms control is hindered by the West’s “double standards”, Russia’s top Army commander said the issue has become irrelevant to current international relations due to a lack of trust between Moscow and the West. 

Russia and the United States– by far the largest nuclear powers– have both expressed regret about the disintegration of the tangle of arms control treaties which sought to slow the arms race and reduce the risk of nuclear war.

“On the whole, the topic of arms control remains in the past, since a return to a minimum level of trust is impossible today due to the double standards of the West,” Mr Gerasimov said according to a report by Reuters.   

The Russian top general said with Moscow having no trust in the US and other Western countries, it would develop ties with China, India, Iran, North Korea and Venezuela.

“Without trust, it is impossible to create an effective mechanism for mutual control,” he was quoted as saying by the defence ministry. 

“Many countries have begun to think about adequate response measures,” he added.

The United States, which casts Russia and China as the biggest nation-state threats to the West, blames Moscow for the collapse of agreements such as the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty and the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty.

The United States formally withdrew from the INF Treaty in 2019, citing Russian violations which Moscow denied. The US withdrew from the ABM treaty in 2002.

President Vladimir Putin in 2023 suspended Russian participation in the New START treaty that limits both sides’ strategic nuclear weapons, blaming US support for Ukraine. However, Moscow has kept to the warhead, missile and bomber limits imposed by the agreement – as has the United States.

Gerasimov said that the deployment of US missiles in Europe and Asia was stoking “a strategic offensive arms race”, with a build-up of American forces in the Philippines of particular concern to Russia.

He said Russia had seen increased activity by the US-led NATO military alliance near Russia’s borders. After Ukraine struck Russian territory last month with long-range missiles supplied by the United States, the US had become a direct participant in the conflict in Ukraine, the general added.

Vladimir Putin speaks at a meeting with foreign policy experts at the Valdai Discussion Club in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Russia, on Thursday (November 7, 2024).
| Photo Credit: AP

“India deserves to be included in the list of global superpowers as its economy is currently growing faster than in any other country,” Russian President Vladimir Putin has said.

Addressing the plenary session of the Valdai Discussion Club in Sochi on Thursday (November 7, 2024), Mr. Putin also said Russia is developing relations with India in all directions and there is a great degree of trust in bilateral ties.

“India should undoubtedly added to the list of superpowers, with its billion-and-a-half population, the fastest growth among all economies in the world, ancient culture and very good prospects for further growth,” he said.

Calling India a “great country”, Mr. Putin said: “We are developing relations with India in all directions. India is a great country, now the largest in terms of population: 1.5 billion people, plus 10 million every year. “ He said India is leading the world in economic growth.

“Our vision of where and at what pace our relations will develop is based on today’s realities. The volume of our cooperation is increasing many times over, every year,” Mr. Putin was quoted by Russian news agency Tass as saying.

Mr. Putin added that the contacts between India and Russia in the security and defence sphere are developing.

“Look at how many types of Russian military equipment are in service with the Indian armed forces. There is a great degree of trust in this relationship. We don’t just sell our weapons to India; we design them jointly,” he said.

Mr. Putin named the BrahMos cruise missile project as an example.

Also Read: Old traditions, new ties: On the importance of the India-Russia partnership

“In fact, we made it [the missile] fit for use in three environments – in air, in sea and on land. These projects, conducted for the benefit of India’s security, are ongoing,” he said.

“This is widely known and no one has issues with that, but these projects demonstrate a high level of mutual trust and cooperation. So this what we will keep doing in the near term, and, I hope, will continue to do in the more distant future,” he said.

Mr. Putin acknowledged certain difficulties on the border between India and China, the agency reported.

However, he said wise and competent people who keep the future of their nations in mind, are searching for compromises and will eventually find them.

“If this approach continues to gain momentum, compromises can be found, and they will be found,” Mr. Putin said.

The ties between India and China nosedived following a fierce clash in the Galwan Valley in June 2020 that marked the most serious military conflict between the two sides in decades.

On October 21, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri said in New Delhi that an agreement had been finalised between India and China following negotiations over the past several weeks and that it would lead to a resolution of the issues that arose in 2020.

The agreement was firmed up on patrolling and disengagement of troops along the Line of Actual Control in eastern Ladakh, a breakthrough to end the over four-year standoff.

Moscow:

Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday named India among the three countries he is constantly in touch with over the Ukraine conflict and said they are sincerely making efforts to resolve it, state-owned TASS news agency reported.

Reporting on his remarks at the plenary session of the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) in Vladivostok, US media outlet Politico reported him as also saying, “If there is a desire of Ukraine to carry on with the negotiations, I can do that.” Putin’s remarks came within two weeks after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s historic visit to Ukraine where he held talks with President President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

“We respect our friends and partners, who, I believe, sincerely seek to resolve all issues surrounding this conflict, primarily China, Brazil and India. I constantly keep in touch with our colleagues on this issue,” Putin was quoted as saying by the Russian news agency.

Separately, Russian Presidential Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the Izvestia daily that India could help in establishing a dialogue on Ukraine.

Underlining the existing “highly constructive, even friendly relations” between PM Modi and Putin, he said the Indian Prime Minister can “lead the line on getting first-hand information from the participants in this conflict,” as he “freely communicates with Putin, with Zelenskyy, and with the Americans.” “This gives a great opportunity for India to throw its weight in world affairs, to use its influence that would drive the Americans and Ukrainians towards using a greater political will and entering the peaceful settlement track,” Peskov said.

He, however, said there are “no specific plans” on PM Modi mediating on the issue.

“At this time they can hardly exist, as we do not see any preconditions for talks for now,” the Kremlin spokesman said.

PM Modi on August 23 visited Ukraine where he conveyed to President Zelenskyy that both Ukraine and Russia should sit together without wasting time to end the ongoing war and that India was ready to play an “active role” to restore peace in the region.

His nearly nine-hour visit to Ukraine, the first by an Indian prime minister since its independence in 1991, came six weeks after he held summit talks with President Putin that triggered anguish in some Western countries.

In his talks with Zelenskyy in Kyiv, PM Modi said India was on the side of peace since the beginning of the conflict and he would even like to contribute personally for a peaceful resolution of the crisis.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

The US aims to destabilise India during the 2024 general election, the Russian foreign ministry has said after a US federal commission’s report criticised New Delhi for alleged violations of religious freedom.

RT news, a Russian government-owned news network, has reported that foreign ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova has said Washington lacks understanding of India’s national mentality and history and continues to make “unfounded accusations” about religious freedoms in India.

“Unfounded Accusations:” US Aims to Destabilise India During #LokSabha2024 – Russian Foreign Ministry

Spox Maria Zakharova has said Washington lacks simple understanding of India’s national mentality and history, as America continues to make “unfounded accusations” about… pic.twitter.com/M8G0gtiP92

— RT_India (@RT_India_news) May 8, 2024

Zakharova called it disrespectful to India as a country and a State. “The reason [behind the US accusations] is to unbalance the internal political situation in India and complicate the general elections,” RT news quoted her as saying. The foreign ministry spokesperson added that Washington’s actions clearly constitute interference in India’s internal affairs.

This comes after the latest annual report by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) criticised India for alleged violations of religious freedom. The commission also renewed its recommendation to the US Department of State to declare India a “Country of Particular Concern”.

The report has accused the ruling BJP of reinforcing “discriminatory” nationalist policies. It has also flagged the continued enforcement of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, Citizenship (Amendment) Act and anti-conversion and cow-slaughter laws. The enforcement of these laws, it has said, has resulted in arbitrary detention, monitoring and targeting of religious minorities and those advocating on their behalf.

“Both news media and nongovernmental organisations (NGOs) reporting on religious minorities were subjected to strict monitoring under FCRA regulations,” the report has said.

The Ministry of External Affairs has slammed the US commission for attempting to “interfere” in India’s electoral exercise and continuing to indulge in “propaganda” against the country.

Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson of the ministry, said last week that the USCIRF is known to be a “biased” entity with a political agenda. “The US Commission on International Religious Freedom is known as a biased organisation with a political agenda. They continue to publish their propaganda on India masquerading as part of an annual report.”

“We really have no expectation that the USCIRF will even seek to understand India’s diverse, pluralistic and democratic ethos,” Mr Jaiswal said. “Their efforts to interfere in the largest electoral exercise of the world will never succeed,” he added.

Moscow also trashed allegations of the involvement of an Indian official in a foiled plot to assassinate Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun. “According to the information we have, Washington has not yet provided any reliable evidence of the involvement of Indian citizens in the preparation of the murder of a certain GS Pannun. Speculation on this topic in the absence of evidence is unacceptable,” Zakharova said at the briefing.

The remarks came in connection with a report in The Washington Post that cited unnamed sources and named a Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) officer in connection with the alleged plot to kill Pannun. The report stated that India is trying to do the same as Russia and Saudi Arabia against its enemy.

“‘The Washington Post’, it seems to me, should use the term ‘repressive regime’ and everything you quoted in relation to Washington. It is difficult to imagine a more repressive regime than Washington, both in domestic and international affairs,” Zakharova said.

The External Affairs Ministry has rejected The Washington Post report, describing it as “unwarranted and unsubstantiated” imputation on a “serious matter” that is under investigation. Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson for the ministry, termed the report “speculative and irresponsible”.