NEW DELHI: Russia on Friday lashed out at the US and multilateral groupings like the Quad, of which India is a member, and AUKUS as moves to contain China, at the defence ministers’ meet of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) here.
The US and its allies are actively opposing the formation of a multipolar world in the Asia-Pacific, with “counter-measures” through military and political alliances such as Quad and AUKUS which are “integrating into Nato”, Russian defence minister Sergei K Shoigu said.
“The concept of a free and open Indo-Pacific region is now promoted…In order to contain China, a front is forming,” he said, stressing that the US and “its enablers” are pursuing a strategic agenda to provoke military confrontation with Russia and China.
“The conflict in Ukraine is a clear demonstration of this criminal policy. Its real aim is to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia, threaten China, and maintain its monopoly position in the world,” Shoigu said. The Russian minister’s critical references to the Quad and the explicit support expressed for China on Indian soil will not go down well with New Delhi, which is already concerned over the tightening Moscow-Beijing strategic embrace amid the ongoing military confrontation with China in eastern Ladakh and fallout of the war in Ukraine.
New Delhi has repeatedly made it clear that it pursues a policy of “strategic autonomy” and that the Quad grouping among India, the US, Australia and Japan is not a military bloc or alliance. AUKUS, however, is a clear-cut military pact among the US, UK and Australia, under which Canberra will gradually acquire at least eight nuclear-powered submarines.
In the bilateral meeting with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Shoigu however reaffirmed the time-tested strategic partnership between the two countries. India-Russia ties have not been curtailed despite all the external challenges of the last year, with bilateral cooperation developing at a large scale and rapid pace for the long-term, Shoigu said.
India, in turn, asked Russia to facilitate the production of spares in India for maintenance of Russian-origin weapon systems, which can also be exported to other nations. The two sides discussed Russian defence industry’s participation in the ‘Make in India’ initiative and ways to provide further impetus to it, an official said.
The US and its allies are actively opposing the formation of a multipolar world in the Asia-Pacific, with “counter-measures” through military and political alliances such as Quad and AUKUS which are “integrating into Nato”, Russian defence minister Sergei K Shoigu said.
“The concept of a free and open Indo-Pacific region is now promoted…In order to contain China, a front is forming,” he said, stressing that the US and “its enablers” are pursuing a strategic agenda to provoke military confrontation with Russia and China.
“The conflict in Ukraine is a clear demonstration of this criminal policy. Its real aim is to inflict a strategic defeat on Russia, threaten China, and maintain its monopoly position in the world,” Shoigu said. The Russian minister’s critical references to the Quad and the explicit support expressed for China on Indian soil will not go down well with New Delhi, which is already concerned over the tightening Moscow-Beijing strategic embrace amid the ongoing military confrontation with China in eastern Ladakh and fallout of the war in Ukraine.
New Delhi has repeatedly made it clear that it pursues a policy of “strategic autonomy” and that the Quad grouping among India, the US, Australia and Japan is not a military bloc or alliance. AUKUS, however, is a clear-cut military pact among the US, UK and Australia, under which Canberra will gradually acquire at least eight nuclear-powered submarines.
In the bilateral meeting with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Shoigu however reaffirmed the time-tested strategic partnership between the two countries. India-Russia ties have not been curtailed despite all the external challenges of the last year, with bilateral cooperation developing at a large scale and rapid pace for the long-term, Shoigu said.
India, in turn, asked Russia to facilitate the production of spares in India for maintenance of Russian-origin weapon systems, which can also be exported to other nations. The two sides discussed Russian defence industry’s participation in the ‘Make in India’ initiative and ways to provide further impetus to it, an official said.