Reciprocal Exchange of Logistical Support is the agreement India sealed with Russia during the visit of Vladimir Putin last week. It looks similar to the agreements India has signed with a host of other countries including the US, France and Japan, and that is to an extent true.
Brig Arun Sahgal of the Forum for Security Initiatives, a Delhi-based think tank, told StratNews Global on The Gist is that “All those agreements we have signed are by and large with Western players or they are all the allies of the West … Russia is not really a part of the Indo-Pacific system.
“Russia which never had the sea legs necessary to enter the Indian Ocean, will now, courtesy India, get access to this region. It will get access to our bases. It’s close to our ports. It will help both navies in terms of maintenance, repair and so on since both rely on platforms that are roughly compatible.”
Bringing Arctic And IOR Closer | India-Russia Logistics Pact
Add to that, India new gets a level of backing given that it is a “standalone” power in the Indian Ocean. The Quad is largely directed towards China and the Indo-Pacific. Exercises with the US Navy does not imply any support to counter the Chinese navy’s growing profile in the Indian Ocean, Brig Sahgal said.
“From the Indian perspective, the Russian presence creates a larger degree of strategic balance in the (Indian Ocean) region. I also might add, that Russia’s maritime security puts Indian Ocean region as one of the places with India as at the at the center.”
The Russians do have concerns in the Red Sea and Sudan, and this deal with India will give them the sea legs to address those concerns. Iran is another country the Russians have a deep interest in and now they have the capability to address those .
Tune in for more in this conversation with Brig Arun Sahgal of the Forum for Security Initiatives.
Thirty eight years in journalism, widely travelled, history buff with a preference for Old Monk Rum. Current interest/focus spans China, Technology and Trade. Recent reads: Steven Colls Directorate S and Alexander Frater's Chasing the Monsoon. Netflix/Prime video junkie. Loves animal videos on Facebook. Reluctant tweeter.
