Russian President Vladimir Putin said that the term 'dragon and elephant' was coined by his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping to describe the relationship between India and China, adding Russia's bear to it later. He made the remarks while speaking at the Eastern Economic Forum 2025.
"Of course, ‘bear’ is a symbol of Russia but we are here- the Far East and the biggest tiger in the world is the local breed here," Putin said on Friday.
Putin's remarks are significant as they come at a time when discussions are being made about the possible revival of the Russia-India-China (RIC) troika, which was first proposed in the 1990s by former Russian Prime Minister Yevgeny Primakov. So far, the three countries have held 20 ministerial-level consultations.
'Lost India, Russia to China': Trump
Interestingly, Putin's remarks also came after US President Donald Trump said that Washington has lost India and Russia to "darkest" China. "Looks like we have lost India and Russia to deepest, darkest China. May they have a long and prosperous future together!" he said on Truth Social on Friday.
India declines comment on Trump's post
Later, India refused to respond to Trump's remarks, with Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal saying that the relationship between India and the US is very important for the government.
"Both our countries share a comprehensive global strategic partnership, which is anchored in our shared interests, democratic values and robust people-to-people ties," he said. "We remain focused on the substantive agenda that our two countries have committed to, and we hope that the relationship will continue to move forward based on mutual respect and shared interests."
US critical of India's Russian oil purchase
India is being repeatedly targeted by the US for buying Russian oil. It has also alleged that India is selling Russian oil in the markets of Asia, Europe and Africa, a charge denied by India. The US has also imposed 50 per cent tariffs on India for this.
While the US continues to attack India, the latter has found an unlikely ally in China, which has openly come out in New Delhi's support and criticised Washington. Notably, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Xi also held a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the SCO Summit in Tianjin, intending to improve bilateral ties between India and China that had plunged to a low following the 2020 Galwan Valley clash.
