Russia Bats For RIC Troika's Revival, Slams NATO For Trying To Drag India Into Anti-China Bloc

(MENAFN- AsiaNet News) <p>Moscow has expressed genuine interest in the revival of the Russia-India-China (RIC) trilateral cooperation format, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Thursday. Speaking at an international conference in Perm, Lavrov emphasized the long-standing significance of the RIC troika and the urgent need to resume its activities.</p><p>“I would like to confirm our genuine interest in the earliest resumption of the work within the format of the troika -- Russia, India, China -- which was established many years ago on the initiative of (ex-Russian prime minister) Yevgeny Primakov, and which has organised meetings more than 20 times at the ministerial level since then, not only at the level of foreign policy chiefs, but also the heads of other economic, trade and financial agencies of the three countries,” Lavrov was quoted as saying by TASS.</p><p>Lavrov made his remarks during the plenary session of an international social and political conference on forming a unified and equitable system of security and cooperation in Eurasia. The conference took place in Perm, located in the Ural mountains at the crossroads of Europe and Asia.</p><h2><strong>Border Tensions Ease Between India and China</strong></h2><p>The Russian foreign minister noted progress in easing tensions between India and China, signaling a potential restart for the RIC cooperation.</p><p>“As of today, as I understand, an understanding has been reached between India and China on how to ease the situation on the border, and it seems to me that the time has come for the revival of this RIC troika,” Lavrov stressed.</p><h2><strong>Lavrov Alleges NATO's Attempts to Involve India in Anti-China Efforts</strong></h2><p>Lavrov accused NATO of trying to draw India into anti-China intrigues, a move he described as provocative.</p><p>“I have no doubts that our Indian friends, and I say this on the basis of confidential conversations with them, obviously see this trend that can be actually deemed as a large provocation,” he added.</p><p>The RIC trilateral mechanism has been inactive since the June 2020 Galwan crisis, which heightened tensions between India and China. However, a recent bilateral meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in Kazan in October 2024 was viewed as a positive step, with both leaders expressing a desire to improve bilateral ties.</p>

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