India’s foreign secretary Harshvardhan Shringla made a strong pitch for the Indo-Pacific, urging Russia not to see it as a US-led effort. Addressing the Russian Diplomatic Academy in Moscow, Shringla said “we see this as a free, open and inclusive region which embraces us all in a common pursuit of peace and prosperity. We would like to work closely with Russia under Asean and East Asia Summit … over 50% of global trade traverses this maritime domain … the security, stability, peace and prosperity of the Indo Pacific region is vital to the world.”
In his view, “a multipolar world and multipolar Asia are not possible without India and Russia,” pointing to the close cooperation between Delhi and Moscow in Eurasia, the Russian Far East besides of course the Indo-Pacific. He recalled the visits by India’s defence and foreign ministers to Moscow last year, two visits that took place despite the pandemic. “It is very critical that we work on maintaining our relations, notwithstanding the impediments of Covid 19.”
