Think-tank dialogue discusses roadmap for ties between India and Russia

Bengaluru: India and Russia are in position to leverage their history of strong bilateral ties to advance multiple areas of collaboration, delegates at an expert-level dialogue said here on Wednesday.

The Vishwa Samvada 2024, a two-day India-Russia Track II dialogue hosted by REVA University, saw talks and panel discussions that explored the possibilities of strengthening strategic ties between the two countries.

Feodor Voitolovsky, director, Primakov Institute of World Economy and International Relations – IMEMO, told reporters that the dialogue presented a new opportunity to develop a connection between expert communities in the two countries.

Voitolovsky noted that the international sanctions on Russia that followed the war in Ukraine did not have a significant economic fallout and cited the surge in trade turnover between India and Russia – $ 65 billion in 2023. Considering that the figure was around $ 8 billion for many years, India’s decision to continue trade ties with Russia has proved rational and has served India’s interests, he said.

“The restrictions in trade with the EU have driven Russia to actively work with the Asian markets and India has been a permanently growing market,” he said. The areas of potential cooperation include energy transition, maritime security, and space exploration.

Madhav Das Nalapat, vice-chair, Manipal Advanced Research Group and member of the REVA University Advisory Board, said India has been maintaining close ties with Russia since 2014 despite geopolitical challenges and “advice to the contrary” from policymakers in friendly countries. “We need a greater people-to-people connection between India and Russia. Right now, the relations are largely government-to-government,” he said.

REVA University on Wednesday also opened the REVA Centre of Excellence for Geopolitics and International Studies at its campus in Yelahanka.

Inaugurating the centre Hardeep Singh Puri Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas and Housing and Urban Affairs said with a growth rate of 7.3% over the first three quarters of the current fiscal India was on a high-growth trajectory to achieve its development goals by 2047.

He said India’s demographic dividend provided it with immense intellectual capital and entrepreneurial genius. P Shyama Raju Chancellor REVA University said the centre was in line with the institution’s commitment to advancing higher education.

Later speaking with reporters the Chancellor said the centre would help the students comprehend geopolitics in greater detail. “This is the first step in this direction; more such programmes are being envisioned” he said. The centre will serve as a platform for discussions on geopolitics and international studies and is envisioned to inspire India’s next generation of thinkers and policymakers.