Indocentric view

Emerging Trends in Russian Foreign Trade

Arun Mohanty

Russian foreign trade   has  been growing  at a much faster rate than its GDP  and industrial production  during past  several years as in case of other countries .  While Russian exports during this period grew by almost 4.5 times, imports grew by 4.3 times. Russia’s share in the global trade during the period increased from 1.5 to 2.6 percent. In terms of domestic economy, exports during 2000 -2007 grew faster than GDP, industrial and agricultural production, money income of the population and volume of retail trade, which means the   external market developed more dynamically than the domestic  market for Russia during the period.

Oil, Gas and Evolution of Russian Foreign Policy 

Nalin Kumar Mohapatra

The recent survey brought out by Energy Information Administration (EIA) provides detailed statistics about of  energy resources presently Russia possesses.  The survey quoting 2010 Oil and Gas Journal points out that Russia is having 1,680 trillion cubic feet of gas, closely followed by Iran. Both, Russia and Iran are Caspian states. The EIA survey further points out that in 2009  Russia  was ranked second in terms of gas production, with production ranging from 19.3 Tcm  and it exported  7.3Tcm to become world’s largest gas  exporter.  With regards to oil, the EIA source quoting Oil and Gas Journal, points out that in 2009 Russia was the largest producer of oil in the world.  The total amount of oil it produced  stood at 9.9  bb/d of oil and exported around  7 million bb/d.1   Some of the above figures  demonstrate the   growing significance of oil and gas sector in the economy and making  Russia an important energy player in the global arena   in contrast to the  pre-1998. One may underline here the fact that  the impact of the hydrocarbon sector is not confined to the economy alone. On the other hand  Moscow’s external policy is deeply influenced by the resurgence of this sector of economy and boosting its image as a “ great power” within a short period of two decades.

Russia’s Path to Democracy: A Different Viewpoint

Sudhir Kumar

Democracy has been the most popular as well as highly contested political concept in the twentieth and twenty first century. Many questions related to democracy building have been raised in the discourse on comparative politics and international politics. The question that is examined in this article is – What has been the source of Russia’s political reemergence from its initial phase of instability and turmoil? The major argument of the article is that criticisms of Russian political system centers around a definite attempt to fit it into a given, predetermined framework i.e. the framework of western democracy. The article argues that it is premature to criticize Russian attempts at democratization. There are valid reasons to categorize Russia’s attempts as success in building its own path of political development, which it started in the latter half of the 1990s. Divided into three parts, the first part of this article gives the background of political developments in post-Soviet Russia, the second part looks into the criticisms of Russian democracy and the third part deals with positive and unique developments in the post-Soviet Russia. Finally the concluding section comes up with the lessons for democratization literature.

Border Rows In Sino-Russian Ties

P. L. Dash

Thence, all through the years of Leonid Brezhnev, China was Soviet Union’s numero uno enemy. Close Indo-Soviet ties on the one hand had pitted Sino-Soviet relations on the other in the backdrop of growing China-US-Pakistan bonhomie. While this was the truism of Cold war block politics, what wrecked Sino-Soviet relations at the pragmatic, bilateral level were the border disputes across Ussuri, Argun and Amur rivers. Ever since that death trap buried Soviet soldiers, mutual talks were few, official negotiations were infrequent and solution remained a far cry. The Soviet tirade against Maoism as a revisionist theory of mainstay socialism spanned over years and did not even die down with the death of Brezhnev.

Russia’s Deideologized Drive for Globalisation

Kuldip Singh

In the post-Soviet phase countries have internalized many tall and illusive claims about globalization. The policies aiming at integrating economies at the global level, and in the process, removal of barriers to free trade and investment came to be looked upon as the remedy for economic ills of the world.  Such claims were made loudly, as at this point of time, global capital was virtually free from the communist challenge it faced for decades. With actually existing socialist regimes in the erstwhile Soviet Union and the East European countries gone, the capitalist countries and their ideologues went to the extent of declaring the defeat of socialism and the triumph of capitalism. There were firm and tall claims about capitalism ‘having no alternative’, which were being validated not only by the defenders of the capitalism but also by those, who in the past, were ardent supporters of socialism. The demolition of the barriers was resorted to in a big way for making the world freer than ever before so that the multi-national corporations could be free to do business globally

Russian Weapon Systems In Indian Air Force

Air Marshall P.K. Mehra

It is well known that the Indian Military in general and Air Force in particular has sourced over 70 percent equipment from erstwhile USSR/Russia. It is ironic that a country, which truly believed in non-alignment and was the founder member of this movement, became hugely dependent on one of the power blocks during the cold war period. It is also difficult to understand that a country, which initially refused offers of combat aircraft since the acquisition did not lead to indigenous manufacture and also suffered from unilateral sanctions, both overt and covert, in the past became so dependent that the upheaval during the breakup of USSR caused serious effect on its military effectiveness. Dependence on USSR/Russia came about over a period of more than half a century and hence events that led to this situation need to be recounted and analysed. It is necessary to understand whether the Indian Air Force, and most importantly the indigenous aviation industry, benefitted from this long association with the erstwhile Soviet Union and Russia and how enduring this relationship will be in future? This paper aims at assessing the importance of Indo-Russian defence linkages and how the recipient country has to take major policy initiatives to break the yoke of dependence.

Russia And Europe: Uneasy Partners

Sanjay Kumar Pandey

For more than three centuries Russians have grappled with the question of whether Russia is a part of Europe or apart from Europe. The ascendance of Europe during sixteenth and seventeenth centuries prompted Russian rulers, most notably Peter the Great (1689 – 1725), to try to bring their country closer to it. Since that time Europe has dominated the Russian politics and foreign policy and become the reference point in the cultural and intellectual life of the country. Though Russia became an important player in the continental politics, Europeans have historically rejected the proposition that Russia is a European country. This prompted many Russian nationalists, better known as the Slavophiles, to glorify Russia’s indigenous institutions – the Orthodox faith and village community - as the basis of Russian identity. Some others turned towards Asia as Russia’s alternative to Europe. The Eurasianists acknowledged the influence of both Europe and Asia but considered Russia to be distinct and unique and were generally critical of the West.

Siberia as Russia’s Regional Gateway                                                              Suchandana Chatterjee

The region, usually connoting the periphery vis-a-vis the centre, has been considered lately with some amount of flexibility. The regional perspective of Eurasia takes into account peripheries, which were long considered to be in geographical isolation and are now regarded as sharing a spatial identity or belonging to an institutional order.1 There are other views that highlight the regional specifics of Eurasia, its ecological and geographical variations and cultural varieties.2 Scholars have also considered several patterns of engagement and interaction that are not strictly confined to geographical adjacency or contiguity but also are related to ‘connectivity through shared perception’.3 The ways in which connectivity and connectedness are perceived also differs from person to person and from discipline to discipline. In general terms, connectivity denotes the importance of shrinking distance over large spaces. In Economics, the shrinking of economic distance matters more than anything else. So, in sheer economic terms, a region is viewed both as an asset as well as a liability. Given these perspectives, one need to look at Siberia, which in the past was the showpiece of Russia’s geographical size which gave it stature in the world. Today, from the standpoint of Russia’s multilevel engagements with the East, Siberia is considered to be a regional gateway with potential for economic integration. Siberia’s energy sector tends to be the focal point of regional studies that deals with parameters of eastward integration and issues of Russian federalism.

Phases in two Decades of Russia’s Tumultuous Economic Transition 

R.G.Gidadhubli

During the last two decades Russia has passed through several phases in its economic objective of bringing about transition from its former totalitarian, communist system to market oriented, capitalist economic system. The country has been led during this period by three presidents: two terms of Boris Yeltsin, two terms of Vladimir Putin and one term of Dmitri Medvedev. An effort has been made in this paper to analyze policy measures undertaken from time to time as also the performance and problems faced by the country under different phases of economic development.

Fall And Swell In Us-Russia Relations

Surendra Gupta

Peter Chaadaev, a Westernizer in the great debate between the Westernizers and the Slavophiles in mid-nineteenth century Russia, argued that for the changes Russia needed at  that crucial  time in its history, it should reject its own dead past and turn to the West for ideas and inspiration.  In a letter published in the journal  Telescope in 1839,  he wrote: “. . . We do not belong to any of the great families of the human race; we are neither of the West nor of the East, and we have not the traditions of either. Placed, as it were, outside of time, we have not been touched by the universal education of the human race… Thus painting a dark picture of Russia’s past, Chaadaev concluded, “We are alone in the world, we have given nothing to the world, we have taught it nothing.”1

      Boris Yeltsin, who became Russia’s president in 1991, and his foreign minister Andrei Kozyrev, were not too far from Chaadaev’s views in their approach to the Western powers. Speaking of his foreign policy, Yeltsin stated that it would be marked by “solidarity with the U.S.-led ‘civilized world’.” And Kozyrev,  in a speech at the UN Security Council on 31 January 1992, spoke of the U.S. and other Western powers  “not merely as partners but as allies.” He then added, “This is a highly important prerequisite for... a revolution in peaceful cooperation among the states of the civilized world.”

Russia Under Medvedev:  Politic And Foreign Policy

Mohd. Moazzam Ali Muztarib

It is election times in Russia for its 100 million voters—parliamentary elections are due in December and the presidential one in March, 2012.  Some call them ‘non-election.  Reason: opposition is stifled through myriad means.  Russia has seven recognized parties, none of them having a whiff of a chance to pose any credible threat to the ruling Putin-backed United Russian party.  No new party is allowed to be registered.  On June 22, 2011, a liberal party was denied registration.  One of its leaders, Vladimir Ryzhkov, wailed:  “we are denied our political rights…We are not allowed to participate in elections.  This is illegal.” To be registered, a party has to poll 3 percent, now staggered to 7 percent, votes in elections. Pravda quoted Medvedev on June 20, 2011, favouring a change in this regard.  Alexander Shatilov recalled to Pravda the 1990s chaos and instability when several hundreds of parties existed.  Ella Pamfilova, once Medvedev’s chief advisor on human rights, spoke of “never ending hate” Kremlin displays towards anyone critical of its policies. Duma deputy Gennady Gudkov agreed with her.  They are called worst than terrorists.  Putin supported nationalist youth organization ‘Nashi’ is used to attack them.  The effigy of the Memorial, a reputed NGO, activist Lyumia Alexseyva (83), a dissident and a leader of Helsinki Group, was dressed in Nazi apparel and paraded by Nashi youth in July, 2010.  Kremlin’s stoic silence led to Pamfilova’s resignation. In January, 2011, the computers of a save-Baikal environment group opposed to Putin were confiscated and the operation was repeated all over Russia in collaboration with the Microsoft.  Two years into office, Medvedev had criticized Russia’s human rights record as “far from perfect” needing reform. But by a decree, Medvedev has created an intergovernmental commission to coordinate the activities of the federal and regional agencies fighting extremism. Political opponents are often harassed in the name of extremism and terrorism.  The Russian Orthodox Church under the strong Partriarch Kirill has transformed the Putin-Medvedev duumvirate into a triumvirate and the ever growing strong church obviously blesses and sides with Kremlin; and not with the opposition.

Factoring Xinjiang in Russia’s Relations with China

Mahesh Ranjan Debata

2011 is a year like none other. It embodied many a landmark in Russia’s relation with China. The year marks the 10th anniversary of the Sino-Russian Good-Neighbourly Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation, the 15th anniversary of the establishment of the Strategic Partnership of Cooperation between the two countries and the 10th anniversary of the creation of Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), under the ambit of which, both the countries have so far managed to go so many steps ahead. In the last one decade or so, there has been a rapid, healthy and stable development in the political and diplomatic relations that has led to the enhancement of mutual trust between the two countries. Frequent high-profile contacts by means of regular meetings of the heads of the state, speakers and the prime ministers of both the countries have resulted in multi-level and wide-ranging consultation and dialogue. During the fifth round of their strategic security talks in Moscow on 24 April 2011, the two countries pledged to chart out their mutual relations for the upcoming 10 years in order to enhance strategic mutual trust.1 Chinese Premier Hu Jintao’s fifth visit to Russia in the last seven years on 17-18 June 2011 clearly shows how much importance both give to each other.

The Vodka: Russia’s Eternal Enigma                                                                                    Rama Sampath Kumar

After the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Russia was quick to overcome the devastating consequences of the recession of the 1990s. However, despite unprecedented growth of the Russian economy that soon followed in less than a decade, it became the tenth largest economy in the world with a GDP of $1.477 trillion in 20101. Expectations were naturally high. But Russians who were about to reap the benefits of such growth found a grim and disastrous reality threatening them. Since 1992 a terrible demographic crisis has been taking place and according to many experts over the next 20 years Russia will need more than 20 million immigrants to compensate for the labour shortage. How this demographic disaster will affect Russia’s domestic political situation—and its international security posture—are questions that remain to be answered.

Russia: An Energy Superpower?

Dr. Jagdish P. Verma

With U.S.-led fighter jets pounding military assets in oil-rich Libya, and Japan still struggling to contain radiation at its stricken Fukushima nuclear plant, concerns are rising around the world about the future of energy supplies, but not in Russia. As the unrest in the Middle East bites into supplies, prices for crude oil approached $105 a barrel this week. That’s helping drive windfall profits that are enabling Russia, the world’s biggest energy exporter to finally emerge as an energy superpower from recession triggered by the global financial crisis in 2008.

Human Rights situations in Russia

Krishnasri Das

Russia has presented the organization’s latest findings on the country’s human rights record, and reports such violations as stifled dissent, racist attacks, substandard justice, and continued violence in the Caucasus. Amnesty International says human rights are being relegated around the world to a back seat in the name of recovery from the current global economic crisis. In Moscow, Amnesty’s director for Europe and Central Asia, Nicola Duckworth, told reporters that open markets have not led to open societies, particularly in Russia and China.Documenting violations recorded in 152 countries, the report points the finger at countries carrying out extra-judicial and judicial executions and at countries in which “disappearances”, cases of ill treatment and torture, and prisoners of conscience have been recorded.

Russia In Latin America: Endearing, But Enduring?

Dattesh D. Parulekar

Nature abhors a Vacuum. And so does the Universe of Inter-State Relations in International Politics. As Washington’s inveterate, ubiquitous and pervasive strategic presence across Latin America hits relative retrace, precipitated by its political, diplomatic and corporeal commitments, geared towards prosecuting ‘Wars against Terror’ in Afghanistan and elsewhere, Moscow has plausibly, perceived and embraced the chance to occupy increasing centre-stage in the Western Hemisphere; expanding its ambit of political contacts and deepening its politico-diplomatic ‘Dialogue’ in the Americas, enhancing the scope, trajectory and content of its economic interchange with the transcontinental Region, and intensifying its labyrinth of Strategic Engagement, through a medley of Investments, Military Cooperation and Exchanges and Energy Compacts with Partner-Countries in Latin America, primed for the long haul.

Orthodox Russia Cradles Buddhism

Sunita Dwivedi

The saga of Buddhism is far older than the history of Russia itself. It arose in India in 6 th century BC and spread in both directions as far east as Japan during the Nara period in 6th century AD and as far west as modern day Turkmenistan during the 2nd century AD. In China, the first Buddhist are said to have reached during the time of emperor Mingdi in first century AD. In the Russian lands, Buddhism is said to have been incorporated as late as the 16th and 17th century.

Chasing a changing world: 

Challenges and opportunities for Russian Security

Rajendra Prasad

Approximately two decades after the disintegration of the Soviet Union, Russia remains evidently active in articulating, fine-tuning and implementing its over-all national security and developmental goals and is searching for viable strategic and non-strategic options to tackle numerous actual and potential, internal and external threats and challenges of harmful nature, coupled with incessant endeavours to strengthen and enhance its position in a complex and multi-polarized global order. Geo-strategically and geo-politically, situated on the periphery of both Europe and Asia, Russia remains inclined towards a dynamic quest for an effective national security system and its operationalization, both internally and externally. Operating as an influential political power in its immediate neighborhood, striking a strategic nuclear balance with the United States and nuclear threat reduction in the prevalent 21st century proliferation/non-proliferation scenarios, dealing with the threat of terrorism,  safeguarding its land and water frontiers, coping with the ever-increasing global and domestic economic crises and re-adjustments, energy and ecological security, demographic crisis and the necessity to reform its armed forces, etc remain compound challenges for Russia, requiring numerous  permutations and combinations for its present and future positioning in the international arena. Combining all these issues, it is largely clear that Russia is constantly faced with a complex predicament.

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