RE:Why India and Russia.....
by Nishanth on Jan 24, 2007 01:30 AM Permalink
The Soviet Union never backed China during the Indo-China war.During the start of the war they chose to be neutral but later on they supported India,from then on they have always been on our side.
The Soviet Union's hand in Shastriji's death is just a story made by crazy people who claim that Mrs Indira Gandhi and the Soviets were involved in his death.Shastriji's autopsy was not done in India as the Indian officials did not find anything suspicious in his death.
If MIG fighter jets keep crashing then don't blame the Russians.Blame our politicians in power who did not replace these old war horses,which have served us well all these years and have won us wars.The Russians were and are always ready to give us their latest fighter jets.
RE:Why India and Russia.....
by Siddhartha Jain on Jan 24, 2007 02:49 AM Permalink
Lets be realistic. Definitely, the Soviet Union must've extracted its price for supporting us and the Soviets were hard negotiators. But its all give and take. The Soviet support in 1971 was what saw us through the threats of the US sending in its navy and China that might've taken the opportunity to attack us again. Those weren't small favours. Today, India needs energy to feed its growing economy and Russia has it. Also don't forget that Russia while weakened still is a significant military power and it is in our best interest to keep the neighbourhood tough guy happy. Geo-politically, IMHO, its better to align with a power closer home (read Russia) than a power across the seas (read the US).
RE:Why India and Russia.....
by vijendra singh on Jan 23, 2007 11:37 PM Permalink
very true Jay , what ever u say here , but still Russia we are in Love with , though I might not really go with the Presidents/Prime Ministers.
RE:Why India and Russia.....
by sumit batra on Jan 24, 2007 12:03 AM Permalink
Very well said. You pointed out the jarring notes... clearly shows that there is no free lunch in international affairs. We did pay for the Soviet support. Having said that, one must remember that at a time when India faced tremendous pressures on its territorial integrity, faced war from a puny neighbour boasted by the US - Soviets stood by us (even if we had to pay for that support indirectly). Internationally, India would have been isolated on Kashmir had it not been for Soviet interventions at the UN. Russia has been a pillar of support for us, and we need to evaluate the future benefits of this relationship objectively, just like we need to "study" the US desire to make us a "global power".
RE:Why India and Russia.....
by R J on Jan 23, 2007 11:19 PM Permalink
Agree with you on the TISCO, MIG etc, issues, but in the big picture, it still makes Russia a trusted friend in the past.
