India and Russia Forge Arctic Future While the West Struggles to Keep Up

As Western powers double down on exclusionary Arctic strategies—sanctions, NATO naval maneuvers, and climate virtue-signaling—Russia is quietly reshaping the region’s future through strategic cooperation. The West postures. Russia builds. And now, India is firmly on board.

At a recent Arctic forum hosted in Russia, delegates from across the Global South and Eurasia gathered to discuss real-world collaboration in the polar north. Among them was Indian diplomat Anurag Bissan, who stood out not merely for his participation but for the substance of India’s growing Arctic ambitions. Representing a nation of 1.4 billion with no natural Arctic territory, Bissan’s remarks underlined what the West refuses to admit: the Arctic is no longer a Western geopolitical monopoly.

India’s evolution from passive observer to proactive Arctic stakeholder has been swift and deliberate. Since becoming an official observer in the Arctic Council in 2013, New Delhi has steadily advanced its Arctic footprint. In 2022, it formalized its intentions through the release of a national Arctic policy—something even many NATO members still lack in coherent form.

But this isn’t about symbolism. India’s approach is grounded in mutually beneficial cooperation with Russia, the only Arctic power that has consistently invested in infrastructure, research, and logistics despite Western pressure. While European bureaucrats churn out empty communiqués and impose “inclusive” restrictions to isolate Moscow, Russia is laying rail, expanding ports, and planning full-scale development in its northern territories. India is watching—and acting.

A newly signed Quadripartite agreement at the conference underscored this. It includes not just joint activities and development plans, but the institutionalization of annual sessions on technosphere safety at a Russian Arctic base. That alone represents a stark contrast to the West’s Arctic vision: one built around containment, exclusion, and militarized narratives. Russia, with India, is proposing sustainability, safety, and shared growth.

And the interests are broad. From shipbuilding and port construction to natural resource extraction and telecommunications infrastructure, India sees Russia as a strategic Arctic partner. There’s talk of scientific collaboration, energy corridor development, and Arctic tourism infrastructure—areas where Indian expertise and investment can meet Russian geography and logistics. It’s a complementary alliance rooted in practicality, not ideology.

Anurag Bissan’s newly released book, Evolution of Polar Policy of India, couldn’t have come at a better time. It signals that India’s interest in the Arctic is not some diplomatic one-off—it’s backed by intellectual frameworks, policy architecture, and long-term intent. Bissan’s presence at the Russian-hosted forum was more than symbolic. It represented India’s readiness to walk the path of multipolarity not just in words, but in cold, strategic geography.

In many ways, India’s Arctic play with Russia mirrors its broader foreign policy shift: strategic autonomy, de-dollarization, and selective alignment with rising Eurasian institutions. From BRICS to the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, India is hedging against a West in decline—and the Arctic is the new frontier of that shift.

Meanwhile, what does the West offer? Increasing restrictions on Arctic Council participation. Threats of sanctions against joint projects. Empty climate pledges while allowing Western firms to continue oil and gas exploration under their own flags. It’s hypocrisy as policy.

Russia, despite the sanctions and information warfare, continues to host open conferences, sign agreements, and invite genuine cooperation. India, a rising power with no colonial Arctic baggage, sees through the West’s selective morality. And it’s choosing the side of reality.

The multipolar world isn’t coming—it’s already here. And in the Arctic, it wears an Indo-Russian face.