R ussian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to New Delhi last week was his first since the invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Bilateral summits used to be held annually, but until now the Indian side has seemed to find reasons to avoid them. This time, however, the Russian president was greeted with ostentatious bonhomie. Prime Minister Narendra Modi met him as he landed, and the two leaders hugged. The readout afterward praised the two countries’ “special and privileged strategic partnership.”

But, as is often the case with Indian diplomacy, the uplifting tone concealed more than it revealed. For all the warmth on display, relations between India and Russia are plateauing.

That’s because they actually don’t have a great deal to offer each other — except perhaps as a hedge against their other f

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