Russian and Indian routes to relevance

The global order is undergoing a profound transformation marked by power shifts, technological advancements, supply chain disruptions and the fragmentation of traditional alliances.

- DINESH BHATTARAI

Historically, Russia has been a key global power, but it now faces challenges from economic stagnation, strategic dependencies and a lack of technological innovation. Conversely, India, the world's largest democracy with the fastest-growing economy and an emerging power in the Indo-Pacific, is balancing its global power aspirations and positioning itself as an independent pole in the multipolar world.

For over three centuries, Russia has oscillated between ambitions of global dominance and periods of internal stagnation. Like its national animal, the bear, Russia's history reveals an enduring quest for relevance-sometimes hibernating, growling, and sometimes turning ferocious. Ever since Peter the Great founded the Russian Empire in 1721 and expanded westward during Empress Catherine the Great's reign, Russia became one of the great powers of Europe, with trade and nationalism at its core.

In the 20th century, the Soviet Union emerged as a superpower-economically, politically and militarily. It became a rival pole to the United States-led block. After World War II, Moscow responded to the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) of European and North American states formed in 1949 by establishing its own Warsaw Pact in 1955. The collapse of the Berlin Wall in 1989 was quickly followed by the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact and the Soviet Union. Russia's aspirations have often overwhelmed its capabilities, resulting in the breakup of the Union due to what Paul Kennedy calls "imperial overstretch." It was mired in repeated cycles of coerced modernisation. Efforts were made towards rapid industrialisation in the former Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin, which resulted in economic inefficiencies and human suffering.