Indo-Soviet Trade Relations

A distinguishing feature of the indo-Soviet trade is its mutually beneficial character, since it represents an example of skilful employment of advantage of the international division of labour by the partners. The Soviet Union supplies to India the machinery and equipment, industrial raw materials and finished products necessary for the development of her economy. In its turn, India exports to USSR a wide range of goods which are not produced in the USSR owing to climatic conditions. The USSR’s share in the total volume of Indian export is constantly growing. The export of Indian goods to the USSR is acquiring special significance for India, since under the conditions of unstable development of the world capitalist economy, there are protectionist restrictions and barriers on the way of goods from the developing countries. Indian goods undergo an ever-increasing competition on the world market and their share in the world trade is one the decrease. The technical co-operation which has an important place in the whole complex of traditional relation of friendship between the two-countries is pregnant with many prospective effects on the further technological upgradation of India’s heavy engineering and thereby ensuring her export capabilities. This exemplifies the fact of a developing nation being profited by its trading relationship with a developed nation and serving as a replica of good business traditions. The emergence of India and the Soviet Union as key trading partners of each other is a major landmark in mature co-operation and an illustrious example of North-South co-operation in their common quest for better international understanding and peace. The experience of implementing the long-term (five-year) trade agreements has convincingly proved the mutual benefit of Indo-Soviet trade ties. Their planned foundation having and perspectives for trade development, has become an important segment of India’s foreign trade. However, a number of issues have been raised in the recent times questioning the relevance of many prevailing institutional and organizational aspects of trade which need to be reviewed and examined in the best interest of promoting India’s trade with the USSR in the years to come.