Exactly 75 years ago Jawaharlal Nehru, one of the principal leaders of India’s independence movement in the 1930s and 1940s, was sworn in as prime minister of the Dominion of India and raised the national flag at the Red Fort in Delhi. Having brought an end to the colonial rule of the British Empire, the Indian leadership embraced the concept of "non-alignment" and "neutrality" and diversified its ties, seeking new partnerships. At the time, the Soviet Union emerged as a natural ally for the independent Indian state.
Nehru was attracted to Marxism and promoted the idea of evolutionary and inclusive socialism. Back in 1927, the would-be Indian prime minister visited the USSR for the first time together with his wife Kamala, younger sister Krishna, and his father Motilal Nehru, a leader of the Indian National Congress.
The trip was connected with the 10th Anniversary of the Great October Socialist Revolution, which was seen by Nehru and other Indian nationalists in "a very positive light," according to Dr. Anuradha Chenoy, professor of the Center for Russian and Central Asian Studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University.
The Soviet press extensively covered the Nehrus' visit to Moscow, hailing Motilal and Jawaharlal as prominent leaders of India’s freedom movement. Jawaharlal Nehru was received in the Kremlin by Mikhail Kalinin, chairman of the Central Executive Committee of the USSR. Having wrapped up his journey, the Indian politician wrote a booklet titled "Soviet Russia, some random sketches and impressions" (1928).
"Jawaharlal Nehru was influenced by Marxist and socialist thought to some extent, as he saw the need for state intervention for alleviating poverty, developing infrastructure and for development," says Dr. Chenoy. "He thus advocated and made policies to develop state- or public sector industries and also created a Planning Commission. Independent India's Second Plan was especially modeled around the Soviet planning system."
USSR Helped India Lay the Groundwork for Industrialization
On January 26, 1950, India became a republic within the Commonwealth of Nations with Jawaharlal Nehru serving as the Republic of India's prime minister until May 27, 1964. During this period, the USSR and India started to deepen their ties, according to Dr. Chenoy.
"Soviet support was crucial for an underdeveloped and newly liberated country like India," the academic explains. "Since India wanted to develop as a 'mixed economy,' that is to have both a state and private sector, Western countries refused them any aid and assistance that India needed. So India turned to the Soviet Union. The Soviet Union assisted India in the creation of new steel plants and several infrastructure industries. They assisted in developing Indian science and technology institutions which laid the base for Indian development in later years."
Dr. Chenoy elaborates that in the 1950s, the USSR helped India lay the groundwork for the country's early industrialization, with the Asian giant then starting to receive Russian defense equipment and military hardware.
Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi (1917-1984) at the National Press Club, Washington, D.C. 1n 1966
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Indo-Soviet Treaty of Peace, Friendship and Cooperation
The Indian war with Pakistan in 1971 became a pivotal moment for Indo-Soviet relations, according to the Indian academic. The conflict erupted over the Bangladesh liberation movement in East Pakistan, which was accompanied by killings of the Bengalis – both Muslims and Hindus – by West Pakistani forces led by General Agha Muhammad Yahya Khan in March 1971.
As a result of the violence and instability caused by the onslaught in East Pakistan, an estimated 10 million Bengalis fled to India by May 1971, prompting Delhi to intervene. Judging from documents released in December 2002 by the National Security Archive (NSA), a US non-profit archival institution, US President Richard Nixon and National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger did nothing to curtail the West Pakistani repressions against Bengalis and backed General Yahya.
After India stepped in to shield the Bengalis, "not only did the United States publicly pronounce India as the aggressor in the war, but the US sent the nuclear aircraft carrier, USS Enterprise, to the Bay of Bengal, and authorized the transfer of US military supplies to Pakistan, despite the apparent illegality of doing so," according to the non-profit.
Moscow's help came in handy at the time: in August 1971, India and the USSR concluded the Indo-Soviet Treaty of Peace, Friendship and Cooperation that specified mutual strategic cooperation between the countries. The treaty sent a powerful signal to the US and its allies. Eventually, the conflict ended on December 16, 1971 with the military forces of West Pakistan that were in Bangladesh surrendering.
"The Indian war with Pakistan on the issue of the liberation of Bangladesh in 1971 was a very special moment of Soviet support since the US wanted to help its ally Pakistan," says Dr. Chenoy. "After this, the Treaty of Friendship signed between India and the USSR was very holistic and provided India with much technological and defense support. Since then the friendship has increased."
India's Strategic Autonomy
The historic Indo-Soviet Treaty of Peace, Friendship and Cooperation was renewed for another 20 years on August 8, 1991. After the collapse of the USSR, Moscow and New Delhi replaced the accords with the 20-year Treaty of Indo-Russian Friendship and Cooperation in January 1993.
Although the dissolution of the USSR resulted in a temporary chill in Russo-Indian economic and trade relations, they were soon reshuffled and are continuing to develop regardless of sanctions imposed by the West, according to Dr. Chenoy.
Since the declaration of independence back in 1947, India has managed to achieve significant strategic autonomy. The country has been maintaining ties with various global powers in accordance with its own strategic plans.
Thus, in June 2022, Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar made it clear at the GlobeSec 2022 Bratislava Forum that India would not copycat the West's anti-Russia policies in the wake of Moscow's special operation to demilitarize and de-Nazify Ukraine. He stressed that “the world cannot be that Euro-centric as it used to be in the past,” adding that India, which is one-fifth of the world’s population and the fifth-largest economy will be guided by its national interests in the first place.