Rail nation strategy guide1/4/2023 A senior member of Modi’s party told FP this was his way of conveying to Putin that the time has come to end the war. While seated next to Russian President Vladimir Putin at a conference last month, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi issued a rare public and direct criticism of the conflict. Nonetheless, India’s recent messaging suggests it is increasingly unhappy with Russia’s war in Ukraine. But India, which upholds a policy of strategic autonomy, would never respond to pressure on the Kashmir issue it doesn’t let other countries’ tactics drive its foreign-policy decisions, especially not one as significant as its relations with Russia. It’s also noteworthy that Pakistan, once neutral on the conflict, is now working with NATO countries to send ammunition supplies to Ukraine. (As I explained in April, the United States has taken a long-term approach to persuading New Delhi that Russia is not a reliable security partner for the future.)įor India, the optics are suboptimal: two key Western partners pushing back against its position on Kashmir after months of frustration with New Delhi’s position on Moscow’s war. Blome’s trip, focused on business and educational cooperation with Pakistan, was likely intended to signal Washington’s desire to strengthen relations with Islamabad-not to put pressure on New Delhi. Ambassador to Pakistan Donald Blome made a three-day visit last week to Pakistan-administered Kashmir, which India claims as its territory. But India could perceive the comments as part of a Western effort to push it to change its position on Russia’s war in Ukraine by putting pressure on a highly sensitive issue. Baerbock, who represents Germany’s center-left coalition, may have simply conveyed her government’s concerns about human rights conditions in Kashmir. The comments were highly unusual for a senior Western official: India rejects any outside involvement in Kashmir, and the international community tends to honor that position. After meeting with her Pakistani counterpart in Berlin last Friday, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock called on her government to help resolve the Kashmir dispute, adding that Germany supports the United Nations engagement on the issue. Making matters worse, India now faces a separate diplomatic challenge that it could see as related to its refusal to take a stronger stand against Russia’s war in Ukraine. India’s latest signaling suggests that it remains committed to that balancing act, even as it has grown increasingly impatient with a conflict that undermines its interests. Russia’s escalation in Ukraine in recent days-carrying out missile strikes targeting civilian areas and reiterating nuclear threats-has compounded the challenge facing India since February: balancing its long-standing ties to Moscow with its deepening relations with the West.
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