Russian Recognition: The Hindu Editorial on Vladimir Putin’s Eastern Ukraine

After weeks of tension and frenzied diplomacy across Europe, Russian President Vladimir Putin has taken a major step forward by declaring formal recognition for the enclaves (oblasts) of the Donbass region of Donetsk and Luhansk in eastern Ukraine, changing the course of the current diplomat. replaces. Attempt. First, the recognition of the two separatist groups controlling parts of the Donbass region as a government indicates that Russia is no longer interested in negotiations based on the “Minsk Agreement”. The agreements – negotiated in 2014 and 2015 but not fully implemented – had secured “special status” for the Donbass enclave. Mr Putin has also ordered Russian “peacekeeping troops” into the area, a move that could spark a conflict with Ukrainian troops. Mr Putin can claim that his move falls short of the “aggression” the US and its NATO allies have been warning about, and that there should be no further hostilities with Ukraine. In doing so, however, they have paid off all hope that the risk of conflict will subside after thousands of Russian troops withdraw for military exercises along the border with Ukraine and in Belarus. In the end, his move is a clear indication that the situation is not going to be “managed” or “handled” without NATO sitting down for serious talks on the security guarantees he has been demanding for two decades, and some discussion of how to regulate. Regarding the expansion of NATO into Russia’s neighboring countries and the heavy presence of Western troops and weapons in the region. The ball is now in the court of the US and its European allies to decide whether they will respond with sanctions, military action, or return to the diplomatic table.

For New Delhi, the escalation in tension comes at a particularly sensitive time: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar is visiting Germany and France, and while he has tried to focus his European negotiators’ attention on the Indo-Pacific It is the actions of Russia that dominate the conversation. In addition, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan is visiting Moscow for the first time by a Pakistani prime minister in two decades, and New Delhi is closely watching the new relationship. The tense times are even more inconvenient as supplies of Russian S-400 missile systems continue to rise, and the US administration is yet to decide whether to waive or enforce CAATSA sanctions against India. Consequently, India’s statement at the UNSC, which appealed for diplomacy and de-escalation while not making any critical comments about Mr Putin’s announcement, is not only a claim to India’s traditional doctrinal position, or a study into pragmatism, But it is also a reflection of it. Difficult Situation New Delhi finds itself in a struggle that has now entered a new phase.