Praise sometimes increases discomfort. Sometimes praise becomes especially meaningful in international diplomacy. This is what the relevant circles think after Russian President Vladimir Putin praised Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi just before the start of the BRICS meeting.
At the moment, the United States and the West are looking at the ups and downs of India-Russia relations with a calm eye. Despite this looking, there is mixed diplomacy. On the one hand, the United States needs New Delhi to negotiate with Russia. On the other hand, Washington’s pressure is increasing as India continues to import crude oil from Russia, bypassing their sanctions.
In this atmosphere, Putin commented, ‘Narendra Modi is our friend. He has repeatedly raised the issue of a peaceful resolution to the Russia-Ukraine conflict during our discussions. He has expressed his views. We want to thank him.’ Along with this, the Russian President did not forget to say that it is not possible for him to give a time frame for when this war will end. He said that Russia wants a peaceful solution, but unfortunately Ukraine does not want it. In addition to praising Modi, Putin did not stop targeting the United States. In his words, ‘NATO has declared war on us. But we will have the last word. We will win. We will survive the war in Ukraine.’
The BRICS summit is starting from next Tuesday in Kazan, Russia. While explaining the essence of BRICS, Putin, dragging his ‘friend’ Modi, said, ‘The aim of the BRICS group is not to oppose the powers of the West. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also said the same thing and he is right. BRICS is not anti-Western, but a pro-Western group. In the coming days, BRICS will become the driving force of economic growth in a large part of the world. This is because of the large size of the countries in this group and their faster economic growth compared to the countries of the West.’
A month ago, Modi spoke to Putin on the phone after his visit to Ukraine. The issue of India’s role in stopping the Russia-Ukraine war came up at that time. After that, Modi wrote on social media, ‘Talked to Putin about the Russia-Ukraine conflict. I conveyed what I had in mind during my recent visit to Ukraine. India is committed to supporting a speedy, lasting and peaceful solution.’ Not only that, Modi said that bilateral relations between India and Russia were also discussed.
Modi went to Ukraine a month and a half after his visit to Russia. There, he made a clear message – India is for peace. He also said that Modi would personally help stop this war if necessary. The Prime Minister said that India did not take any side during the war. However, New Delhi was not neutral at all. India has always been for peace and will remain so.
Bollywood has always played a big role in the New Delhi-Moscow bilateral relations. From Raj Kapoor to Mithun Chakraborty to Shah Rukh Khan – has worked as one of India’s best diplomatic envoys. In response to the question whether Russia will provide any facilities to the BRICS countries regarding cinema, Putin said today, ‘We have a separate TV channel only for showing Indian films. “If Indian filmmakers are interested, we will provide special facilities for promoting their films in Russia. This can be discussed.”
