In Putin-Mode

Russian President Vladimir Putin’s recent two-day visit to India must be read within the contours of a global order still in flux-a landscape unsettled, in part, by former U.S. President Donald Trump’s erratic trade wars and their long-lasting geopolitical aftershocks. Before Trump weaponised tariffs and disrupted long-standing economic norms, he and Prime Minister Narendra Modi cultivated an unusually warm and theatrical rapport. Their camaraderie was vividly displayed during the 2019 “Howdy Modi” extravaganza in Texas and again in Ahmedabad, where Trump received an enormous stadium welcome attended by nearly 300,000 people. These events underscored a period in which the U.S. and India projected a sense of alignment and mutual political benefit. Since then, however, the international environment has undergone significant shifts. Both Modi and Putin share the rare distinction of being barred from entering certain countries-Putin for war crimes in Ukraine, and Modi over allegations associated with the 2002 Gujarat riots while he was chief minister. Into this fraught backdrop came Trump’s shocking invitation to Putin to visit Alaska, a gesture that effectively rehabilitated Putin’s international standing. Trump, intentionally or not, altered the calculations of world leaders by signalling that Putin could again be courted openly. Against this complex realignment, India’s reception of Putin should not be misread as an echo of the Modi-Trump bonhomie. Instead, it reflects New Delhi’s strategic imperative to preserve autonomy in an increasingly polarised world. Confronted with Western sanctions on Russia, Modi has sought to maintain a foreign policy anchored in sovereignty rather than ideological alignment. India refuses to become a subsidiary player in a Western-led coalition or a Sino-centric bloc. Putin’s visit thus becomes a tool for India to reinforce its global leverage while signalling its refusal to be constrained by the preferences of any single power centre. The significance of this visit also lies in its historical context- one frequently distorted amid today’s relentless media churn and the growing tendency to recast or oversimplify geopolitical history. India’s relationship with Russia, previously the USSR, did not emerge in a vacuum. It was built painstakingly over decades, beginning with Jawaharlal Nehru’s non-aligned foreign policy and his admiration for the Soviet economic model. Through the 1950s, the Soviet Union played a crucial role in India’s industrial development, helping establish the Bhilai and Bokaro steel plants, BHEL, and ONGC, while also extending diplomatic support, including a UN Security Council veto in India’s favour on Kashmir. Indira Gandhi elevated this partnership to unprecedented strategic depth after 1966. Her leadership culminated in the landmark 1971 Indo-Soviet Treaty of Peace, Friendship and Cooperation, a pact that served as a powerful deterrent against the emerging U.S.–China–Pakistan axis. Soviet naval intervention during the Bangladesh Liberation War proved pivotal to India’s military and political success. This legacy forms the bedrock of Indo-Russian ties today, a foundation not easily diminished by changing political narratives. Yet the future holds a stark reality. Despite the confident optics displayed by Putin and Modi, neither Russia nor India can independently counterbalance the accelerating rise of China-a nation rapidly positioning itself for global economic and military dominance. Without recalibrating relations with Western powers, both risk being overshadowed by a Red giant intent on redefining the world order. In this sense, Putin’s visit is not simply a diplomatic engagement but a reflection of the urgent recalculations required in an era of shifting alliances and expanding geopolitical fault lines.