However, at a strategic level, the US and India have perhaps the strongest shared interest in containing China, as seen through initiatives such as the Quad grouping, an informal strategic forum in the Indo-Pacific region.
And Russia’s growing partnership with China as the war in Ukraine continues is a significant foreign policy concern for India.
“This is a very sensitive issue for India. New Delhi will closely monitor the significant changes taking place in China-Russia relations, as China is considered India's most challenging rival,” ORF's Unnikrishnan said.
If Russia emerges from the war in Ukraine defeated, weakened and more beholden to China, India too could find itself in a vulnerable position.
“China is something that dominates Indian strategic thinking. A formal Russia-China alliance is the worst-case scenario for India… We should put all our energy into ensuring that such a situation does not happen,” former Indian deputy national security adviser Pankaj Saran said in April at a discussion organised by the United States Institute of Peace (USIP).