That India has distanced itself from Russia in a big way is a fact that has found its best expression from the very recent visit of India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the US during which not only he has been asked, not offered at all, by US President Donald Trump to purchase not only armaments but also buy oil and gas from the largest economy of the world.
Modi has described the far-right leader as a friend and told him sheepishly that he was adopting a take on his “Make America Great Again” slogan. It is true that India currently relies on a fleet of Russian fighter jets as well as a small number of French-made Rafale aircraft.
Moreover, it was less than a year ago that India overtook China as one of the world’s biggest importers of Russian oil. China had significantly lowered its oil imports from Russia as Chinese refiners bought less because of lower profit margins.
India has been cashing in on the opportunity of discounted oil from Russia for quite some time. It is true that both Trump and Modi heaped praise on each other. However, the Indian prime minister commended Trump while angling, albeit unsuccessfully, to avoid the steep ‘reciprocal’ tariffs Trump plans.
Be that as it may, both Trump and Modi are responsible for democratic backsliding in their countries. Both countries have regressed immensely under their leadership. There’s little or no doubt about the fact that Trump and Modi are the mainstream but highly controversial faces of the global far-right.
Naureen Malik, Islamabad
Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
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