The diplomatic engagement between India and Russia traces back to 1947, when Kirill Novikov became the first Russian ambassador to India. On December 21, 1947, Novikov arrived in Delhi with his family, marking the formal establishment of diplomatic ties. India had concurrently appointed Vijayalakshmi Pandit as its first ambassador to the Soviet Union.
Over the decades, the relationship deepened through high-level visits and symbolic gestures. In 1955, Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru visited the Soviet Union, and later that year, Soviet leaders Nikita Khrushchev and Nikolai Bulganin visited India, the first visit to a non-communist country since the Cold War began. During Nehru’s second Soviet visit in 1960, the USSR gifted him a cow, symbolizing goodwill and cultural exchange.
The partnership extended into technological and defense cooperation. Soviet cosmonauts, including Yuri Gagarin and Valentina Tereshkova, visited India in the early 1960s, strengthening scientific and cultural ties. Russia also assisted India in industrial projects, such as the establishment of the Bokaro Steel Plant in 1966, and provided crucial support during the 1971 war with Pakistan.
Subsequent decades saw sustained engagement with visits by leaders such as Mikhail Gorbachev, Boris Yeltsin, and Vladimir Putin, spanning from 1988 through 2014. Putin’s multiple visits underscored continuity in strategic collaboration, including cooperation in nuclear energy and defense technology.
This historic trajectory reflects the evolution of India-Russia relations from early diplomatic exchanges to a multifaceted strategic partnership encompassing defense, energy, technology, and culture. Observers note that ongoing visits, including Putin’s current one, continue to cement bilateral ties and facilitate agreements of significant economic and strategic value.
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