During a joint media briefing in New Delhi on Wednesday, two Russian diplomats said that Russia’s ties with Pakistan and India are independent of each other and that Moscow’s military cooperation with Islamabad only aims to supply equipment to aid the country’s fight against terrorism. They also stressed that Russia’s ties with Pakistan do not “target any relations against anyone”.
Ambassador Nikolay Kudashev and Deputy Chief of the Russian mission Roman Babushkin clarified Moscow’s foreign policy position by saying that India is a “trusted partner” and that ties with Pakistan are based on “independent” relations. “Ties with both are based on their own merits… We believe that there is absolutely no reason to see that there are divergences or any misunderstandings between us. It is not the case in Russia-India ties,” said Babushkin. The official further added, “We are all members of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation and develop cooperation in various fields including regional security, fight against terrorism and to deal with other threats… Russia is following its commitments, and there is a limited cooperation with Pakistan as compared to India. However, the fight against terrorism is our common agenda. So we also help Pakistan [by] providing anti-terrorism equipment and holding dedicated exercises.”
The remarks come in the wake of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov’s visit to Islamabad last week. On counterterrorism (CT) efforts, Lavrov reaffirmed Russia’s readiness to continue providing Pakistan with the necessary assistance to enhance and strengthen the country’s CT capabilities, including the supply of relevant military equipment. “We believe that this will be in the interests of all regional countries,” the minister said. The officials also agreed to increase cooperation and coordination on the international stage, at the United Nations (UN) as well as under the framework of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).
This promise of supplying Islamabad with military equipment has made New Delhi uncomfortable, since it has consistently opposed Moscow’s efforts to ship military hardware to its arch-rival. A day before Lavrov’s meeting in Islamabad, the diplomat had also visited New Delhi, where he met with Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar. Kudashev said that the meeting was a “very important and remarkable event, which contributed a lot to the special and privileged strategic partnership between our two friendly nations.” He added, “Our ties remain equal, solid, comprehensive, coherent and forward-looking despite any global turbulence.”
Apart from this, the diplomats also took the opportunity to raise their concerns about the Quad grouping that India is a part of, along with the United States (US), Australia, and Japan. “We just want to call the attention of our Indian partners and friends to the dangers emanating from the Western Indo-Pacific strategy aimed at revival of the Cold War-era thinking and structures,” Kudashev said.
Russia Shares “Independent Relations” With India and Pakistan: Russian Diplomats
Russian diplomats have insisted that Moscow “has no intention to interfere or take sides” between New Delhi and Islamabad.
April 15, 2021
SOURCE: TWITTER, ANI