The recent strain in Indo-US ties has eased following the 2+2 dialogue

Any misunderstanding with Washington over New Delhi’s stand on the Russia-Ukraine affair and its fallout appears to have been resolved. It took a Modi-Biden virtual meet followed by a frank 2+2 dialogue between the sides to accomplish this. It was not easily achieved. Both sides proactively worked towards the resolution, showing maturity and purpose. There was a time, in recent weeks, when the relations did stretch after US President Joe Biden described India’s stand vis-à-vis Russia as “shaky”. Thereafter, a number of American officials followed it up with their own choice of phrases to caution India about retaining friendship with Russia and importing arms from that country beyond a point. All this is a part of communication between countries in the modern order. Major powers, middle powers, small powers, they all have their interests and the nature of current diplomacy, unlike the wolf-warrior type, recognises that these interests need not always coincide and can collide at times and that is no reason to bring the relationship to the brink. The United States now formally recognises and respects India’s longstanding relationship with Russia. Importantly, it appears convinced that India’s relations with Russia are not influenced by China in any manner. India has repeatedly said it does import arms from Russia and, in the post-Ukraine situation, buy discounted oil from there. It has nothing to do with China. It is not at all about India’s ambivalence over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

To the contrary, India is rushing aid to Ukraine and wants the war to stop at once, insisting that it is against an illegal incursion into sovereign territory. Foreign Minister S Jaishankar minced no words clarifying India’s position: “…I suspect, looking at figures, our purchases (of Russian oil) for the month would be less than what Europe does in an afternoon…We’re against the conflict, we’re up for a dialogue and diplomacy, we’re for urgent cessation of violence ….” The virtual meet and the 2 + 2 dialogue seem to have also cleared some air on QUAD and India. New Delhi may of late have harboured a feeling that it was facing the border standoff with China on its own even though it is a crucial member of QUAD that stands for a free and open Indo-Pacific. US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin put it on record that China is “attempting to challenge and undermine the sovereignty of its neighbours”, adding candidly: “…we will continue to stand alongside you (India) as you defend your sovereign interest.” That, as far as New Delhi is concerned, is an open recognition of both India’s China challenge and its status as an equal partner — owing to its geographic positioning — in a grouping that focuses on the Indo-Pacific region. So, it is not about non-alignment at all. It is about a country reserving its right to associate with any section of the international community to safeguard its national interest without compromising its international commitment to peace and order.