As the war in Ukraine gets tougher, bloodier, and messier, and as American pressure increases on India to move away from Russia and become a part of the American camp, India’s neutrality becomes a difficult one to hold. Choosing one of the two sides is not going to help either. It is possible for India to hold on to the position it has now taken, squeezing in a bit here, and wiggling out there. And it can tumble along without making its position clear. But at the end of the day, India may have to think out its stance, both in government and outside. It is not enough to blame America and NATO’s double standards while paying lip service to Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
There are serious issues of international politics underlying the war in Ukraine, raising several questions about international relations. There are at least four issues that are bobbing up and down. The first is about alliances, based on both economic and security concerns. One of the issues that provoked the war in Ukraine has to do with NATO. The second is about friendly regimes in the neighbourhood. Russia perceives the government of President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to be anti-Russia and, therefore, a threat to Russia. The third issue is that of nationalism, and the fourth is religion. The last two are explicit ideological factors in Russian President Vladimir Putin’s stance over Ukraine. We in India have not talked about these things with sufficient honesty and clarity.