(a) 'Relations between India and Russia are rooted in history, mutual trust and mutually beneficial cooperation.' Discuss. (20…

(a) India–Russia relations

The relationship rests on Soviet-era foundations: Soviet vetoes on Kashmir in the Security Council (1957, 1962), the Bhilai steel plant, the 1971 Treaty of Peace, Friendship and Cooperation signed months before the Bangladesh war, and large technology transfers in defence, space and industry. After the Cold War, ties shifted from ideological alignment to strategic pragmatism, formalised as a Strategic Partnership in 2000 and a Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership in 2010. Defence remains the core: S-400 air-defence systems (contracted in 2018 despite CAATSA risk and used during Operation Sindoor in 2025), the BrahMos joint venture, AK-203 rifles made at Amethi and the lease of a nuclear submarine. Yet diversification has cut Russia's share of India's arms imports from about 76 per cent (2009–13) to about 36 per cent (2019–23), according to SIPRI. Energy links include the Kudankulam nuclear plant, and after 2022 discounted Russian crude rose from under 2 per cent to over a third of India's oil imports, lifting trade to record levels with a large deficit for India; the leaders set a target of USD 100 billion in trade by 2030. The Ukraine war has strained the relationship: the US imposed an additional 25 per cent tariff on Indian goods in August 2025 over Russian oil and sanctioned Rosneft and Lukoil in October 2025, while payment difficulties and Russia's growing dependence on China test it. India has abstained on UN resolutions condemning Russia while saying "this is not an era of war" (2022). Putin's New Delhi visit for the annual summit in December 2025 shows that both sides still value a partnership built on strategic autonomy and multi-alignment.

(b) The Sustainable Development Goals

The 17 SDGs and 169 targets, adopted in September 2015 as the 2030 Agenda, succeeded the eight MDGs. Unlike the MDGs they are universal, apply to developed countries too, and pledge to "leave no one behind"; they are organised around the five Ps of people, planet, prosperity, peace and partnership. For India, SDG 1 (No Poverty), SDG 4 (Quality Education), SDG 7 (Clean Energy) and SDG 13 (Climate Action) are especially salient because they intersect with social protection, human capital, energy access and climate vulnerability. India ranked 99th in the 2025 global SDG Index, reflecting gaps in health, gender, environment and inequality. Localisation is critical: Panchayati Raj institutions and state-level monitoring translate national targets into local delivery, and NITI Aayog's SDG India Index, whose national score rose from 57 in 2018 to 71 in 2023-24, strengthens accountability. Globally, UN reports show that only about a third of the targets are on track or moving moderately towards 2030, with many stalled or regressing. Financing is the main bottleneck, which the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development (Seville, 2025) sought to address; post-COVID fiscal pressure and climate-finance shortfalls demand domestic resource mobilisation and credible international support.

(c) Drivers of India's new interest in Africa

Energy security, markets, the diaspora and strategic competition drive India's renewed engagement. ONGC Videsh's stakes in Mozambique and Sudan illustrate the energy motive, and Africa's growing consumer base opens markets for Indian goods, services and infrastructure firms; trade is close to USD 100 billion a year and India has extended over USD 12 billion in concessional lines of credit. The diaspora of about three million provides social and economic bridges. Institutionally, the India-Africa Forum Summits (2008, 2011, 2015), Modi's ten "Kampala Principles" (2018), 18 new missions and India's success in securing the African Union's G20 membership in 2023 mark the new interest. Strategically, India offers demand-driven, less debt-heavy partnerships as an alternative to China (the India-Japan Asia-Africa Growth Corridor of 2017 proposed one but has made little progress) and secures the western Indian Ocean through maritime cooperation with Mauritius (including the Agalega facility inaugurated in 2024), Seychelles, Mozambique and Madagascar. Critical minerals such as cobalt and copper are a newer driver, and Africa's 54 votes matter for UN Security Council and wider multilateral reform. Vaccine Maitri, digital public infrastructure, education (an IIT campus in Zanzibar, 2023) and ITEC training provide soft power.