Don't understand this euphoria over Russians coming to the rescue of India, especially when multiple actions of past prove Russia to be as deceptive as Chinese. Ideologically, Russia is much closer to China and globally, Russia has supported China on many occasions in order to challenge US leadership in the world. Both the countries perceive United States as their enemy and don't wish to see India developing closer ties with US.
It is true that Russia helped India during 1971, however, it was only a geo-political decision driven by Russian interests and not due to any love for India.
Historically, Russia has played a dubious role in Indian political matters in order to serve its national interests. Following points prove that Russian friendship has been counter-productive to India's rise in global politics:
Mysterious Death of former PM, Lal Bahadur Shastri
Being a hardcore nationalist, Shastri ji always placed national interests above self interest, however, he wasn't acceptable to loyal servants of dynasty. The treachery of these servants was driven by the desire to fulfill personal interests of their leader. Russia was aware about this internal dynamic and grabbed this opportunity to facilitate a friendly political setup in India. Despite the loss of a true 'National Hero', the bonhomie between India and Russia never subsided. Till date, Russia hasn't declassified files related to mysterious death of India's former PM.
Sonia Gandhi - A suspected KGB Agent
In the 1970s, Indira Gandhi had allowed a free reign to KGB in India, as many Russian diplomats and trade officials established their presence in the country. Outside Russia (erstwhile Soviet Union), KGB had the strongest presence in India. In all likelihood, the Soviets were keeping track of Indira Gandhi's son, Rajiv Gandhi. They somehow managed to setup Sonia for Rajiv Gandhi to gain closer access to PMO. Despite her Italian roots, Sonia Gandhi has a strong Russian connection.
Mysterious Death of Deen Dayal Upadhyaya - Jan Sangh Founder
Former Jan Sangh leader and founder, Deen Dayal Upadhyaya, had emerged as a strong opposition leader in India. His rising popularity had become a prickly matter for the Congress leadership. Deen Dayal ji's assassination in a Lucknow-Patna train had a strange similarity with KGB's modus operandi. His dead body was found just 150 yards away from Mughalsarai station. The manner of killing of Deen Dayal Upadhyaya ji raises suspicions about possible involvement of then ruling dispensation in collaboration with KGB.
Sunanda Pushkar Murder
Sunanda Pushkar Tharoor was mighty upset from Mr Shashi Tharoor due to his extra-marital adventures. She was on the verge of exposing a vicious nexus between her husband, Congress and Pakistan, however, was brutally silenced. Later, attempts have been made to cover up the murder as a suicide. Sunanda Pushkar was murdered through forceful injection of Russian poison (Polonium 210) - a rare substance commonly used by KGB. Therefore, one cannot rule out Russian involvement.
Selling of outdated Weapons
Russia primarily perceives India as a profitable market for its weapons and weapon systems. Most of the times, the weapons are deliberately under-priced in comparison to other major weapon suppliers such as US, France and Israel. However, Russia has a had history of escalating the prices during the execution of the contract, thereby leaving no choice for India except to pay more. Purchase of aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov, later known as INS Vikramaditya, is one such example where India ended up paying double of the initially agreed price. Defense equipments and spare parts get obsolete within two to three years of purchase. Delays, inconsistent delivery and other bottlenecks are quite common while dealing with Russia. Whether it is the delivery of new weapons or up gradation of existing Russian weapons, Russia has played false on many occasions. During Kargil war, a large percentage of Krasnopol precision guided munitions was found to be defective. The T-90s tanks were handed over to India without necessary weapons like missile firing systems.
Conclusion
In the recent Indo-China faceoff, Russians misled India to believe that buildup of Chinese Army across LAC is a routine military exercise. Indian bureaucrats, still charmed by Soviet era, lobby for Russian deals that may accrue invisible benefits (in the form of kickbacks & commissions) to them.
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