क्या मोदी की रूस यात्रा भारत का गलत कदम: दावा-अमेरिका और यूक्रेन के विरोध का असर नहीं, ट्रम्प की जीत पर दांव खेल रही सरकार

Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Russia on 8 July. After which Ukraine and America criticized his visit.

On July 8, Prime Minister Modi arrived on a visit to Russia. After reaching Moscow, when Modi met Russian President Vladimir Putin, both the leaders hugged each other. This was discussed all over the world including the Western world and Ukraine.

America also raised objections to Modi’s visit to Russia. US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said that it is concerned about India’s relations with Russia. America’s NSA even advised India that strong relations with Russia are not the right bet for India.

Russian Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti even said that India should not take its relations with the US lightly.

3 reasons that answer the criticism of the Russia tour
The opposition to Modi’s visit to Russia was not limited to America. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said that it is very sad that the leader of the world’s largest democracy embraced the world’s biggest bloody murderer. This has given a setback to the efforts for peace in Ukraine.

In such a situation, questions are being raised regarding this visit whether India has made a mistake in understanding the political equations.

According to a report published in Al Jazeera, the answer to this is hidden in three reasons.

The reasons are – the history of India-Russia relations, confidence in India’s ability to handle complex relations and the bet that former US President Donald Trump may return to power and soften America’s stance against Russia.

India is betting on Trump’s return
On July 13, former US President Donald Trump was attacked during a rally in the US state of Pennsylvania.

Prime Minister Modi condemned the attack and wished Trump a speedy recovery. He posted on the social media platform X and addressed Donald Trump as my friend Trump.

According to CNN, Donald Trump seems to be leading in the US presidential elections to be held in November this year. After the first presidential debate in June, 67% people considered Trump the winner of the debate. In a poll conducted by CNN itself, 49% Americans considered Trump their first choice for the post of President.

After the attack on Trump, people have developed sympathy for him. This can benefit him in the elections. In such a situation, Donald Trump has proved to be a strong contender for the post of President so far.

Modi will be happy if Trump wins, America’s focus will be on China
Al Jazeera quoted an Indian official as saying, ‘Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential elections seems almost certain. If this happens, the Indian Prime Minister will be happy. According to analysts, Trump’s victory will reduce the pressure on India to distance itself from Russia.

According to Christopher Clary, professor of political science at the University of Albany, during Trump’s second term, he will care less about the kind of relations between India and Russia. The reason behind this is believed to be China. In his first term, Trump paid more attention to America’s rival China rather than Moscow.

Both leaders Modi and Trump have together participated in Howdy Modi in 2019 and Namaste Trump program in 2020.

Balancing relations with Russia and the US
India and Russia have had good relations since the Soviet era. Even after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, close relations between the two countries remained. Russia has been supplying weapons to India for many decades. These include fighter planes like MiG and Sukhoi as well as the S-400 defense system.

Despite the sanctions imposed on Russia after the Ukraine war, India has increased its crude oil imports from Russia. Today Russia is an important oil supplier to India. However, Western countries have been criticizing India’s import of crude oil from Russia.

According to Al Jazeera, on the other hand, in the last few years India has emphasized on strengthening relations with Western countries, especially America. A big reason for this is the growing stature of China. In the last few years India has tried to reduce its dependence on Russia for weapons. It is now buying modern weapons from America and European countries.

Prime Minister Modi has visited America 8 times and Russia 6 times in the last 10 years.

India is capable of handling relations
According to the report, India has sufficient resources to deal with problems arising in its relations with America or other countries. According to Professor Clary, after Modi’s visit to Russia, very few people in America would have been surprised by this.

The professor says that the foundation of India-US relations is strong. Such visits will not have any impact on it. Before going to Russia, Modi did not participate in the SCO summit.

Speaking to Al Jazeera, an Indian official said that India is planning to hold a summit of the Quad countries later this year. This organization has been formed for mutual cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region. China has been seeing it as a challenge.

The summit of BRICS countries is going to be held in the Russian city of Kazan at the end of this year. Russian President Vladimir Putin has also invited Modi for this summit during his recent visit to Russia. However, it remains to be seen whether Prime Minister Modi will visit Russia for the second time in 3 months or not.