India’s partnership with Russia runs deep. Multifaceted and longstanding in nature, this relationship is perhaps slated to witness newer, deeper ties in the times to come. Signed on 18th February 2025, the RELOS agreement, ratified by the State Duma of Russia, is an extension of the defence and logistical facet that exists between the two nations. Vyacheslav Volodin, the Chairman of the State Duma, emphasised that the ratification of this agreement is another step towards the openness, reciprocity and development of this relationship. Further, in a joint statement issued by the Indian Ministry of External Affairs in December 2025, the support for strengthening India-Russia relations was reaffirmed.
What exactly is the RELOS agreement?
Built on the special and strategic partnership existing between India and Russia, the Reciprocal Exchange of Logistics (RELOS) agreement had been in the works for years. From being in its final stages in 2021 to the Russian government releasing a draft document after Indian Prime Minister’s Moscow visit in July 2024, the RELOS agreement, signed in February 2025, finally became operational on 12th January 2026. It is a defence agreement that aspires to create conditions that are favourable for furthering the bilateral cooperation between the militaries of the two countries. In accordance with this agreement, the two countries are allowed to use each other’s ports, logistics hubs, military bases, airfields, refueling infrastructure, repair facilities and maintenance support. Such provisions are applicable during joint exercises, personnel deployments, humanitarian missions, and contingencies occurring in potential wartime situations. In addition, a deployment of no more than 3000 personnel, 10 military aircraft, and 5 warships at any given point of time is permitted under the framework of this agreement.
Formally, the RELOS agreement is a logistics support agreement. However, the strategic opportunities it may create for India are where its significance lies. With India’s increasing interests in the Arctic region, maritime operations, and its emphasis on strategic autonomy, examining RELOS through a lens that sees beyond just the logistics becomes important.
Operational Expansions of Reach for India
The RELOS agreement details provisions for joint exercises and training to be conducted, humanitarian assistance to be sent for natural disasters, technological disaster recovery and other situations. Access to road, river, sea and air transport in respective territories along with pre-authorised port calls, real estate, etc. based on conditions mutually agreed by authorised bodies is also stipulated in the agreement. Facilitating the conduct of pre-ordained exercises in accordance with separate arrangements between India and Russia ties in operational flexibility as well as bilateral integration, which broaden the horizon of shared interests of the two countries. The validity of the agreement is for a period of 5 years, automatically extending for subsequent periods of 5 years unless terminated with prior intimation. From an Indian perspective, this agreement is an enhancement of India’s missions beyond its own borders in the northern hemisphere. Given Russia’s vast land and maritime reach, India could now be looking at increased long-range deployment of its armed forces in regions that are strategically remote but vital, such as the Arctic.
The Arctic Aspirations of India and the Strategic Implications of RELOS
The rapid acceleration of climate change in the Arctic region due to rising global temperatures has caused changes in its ecosystem. The poles hold immense significance, with one of the primary functions being regulation of the Earth’s climatic features and weather phenomena. The impact, thus, of changes in the Arctic region is far-reaching- impacting human life, economy, and multiple other domains globally. With India being part of the Third Pole (the Hindu Kush Himalaya region), the north and south poles and consequently the Arctic become of particular importance. India’s interests in and with the Arctic have been highlighted in India’s Arctic Policy titled “India and the Arctic: Building a Partnership for Sustainable Development” released in 2022 by Union Minister Dr. Jitender Singh. Furthermore, the Arctic is home to vast energy resources; with rapid melting of ice caps, new opportunities have been arising for presence in the Arctic. The Northern Sea Route (NSR) has been gaining popularity as an emergent lane for maritime shipping along the Russian coast in the Arctic region. Cutting navigation distances between Europe and East Asia by up to 40%, the NSR, stretching from the Barents Sea to the Bering Strait, has become a focus for nations like India, Russia, and China. The emphasis on the NSR being a strategic advantage to Russia can be seen in their continuous engagement via Rosatom in the area.
International cooperation for various purposes such as scientific research, economic engagements, and geopolitical stability forms the basis for the formation of bodies such as the Arctic Council. India’s presence in the Arctic Council as an observer nation, its multi-sensor moored observatory (IndARC) deployed in Svalbard, its northernmost atmospheric laboratory in Gurvebadet along with its membership of the Ny-Ålesund Science Managers Committee (NySMAC), the International Arctic Science Committee (IASC) and its active involvement in Arctic projects exemplifies its presence in the region. With all this taken in context, the RELOS agreement could potentially expedite India’s Arctic mission with its logistical and operational reach. Possessing the longest coastline with the Arctic, Russia controls most of the infrastructure associated with Arctic navigation and access.
A multitude of aims have been laid out in India’s Arctic Policy. They underscore the requirements India has or aims to develop for its campaigns in the Arctic region. The objectives are wide-ranging; some of them are as follows: 2.2.1 lays down the goal to set up research stations in the Arctic; 2.1.9 calls for developing bilateral and multilateral projects with Arctic nations and other parties of the Arctic of flora; 2.1.12 delineates expansion of international cooperation. Further, 5.0.1 mentions the Northern Sea Route and Arctic Navigation; the existing cooperation of India – Russia finds its mention in 5.0.3; 5.0.7 brings to notice India’s desire to promote opportunities for engagement in Arctic transit. 5.0.8 emphasises working towards linking the International North-South Transport Corridor with the Unified Deep-water system and its further extension into the Arctic. Promotion of security and safety in the Arctic region in accordance with international treaties and covenants is the objective 6.0.8. The 7.0.5 objective is for strengthening training institutions for the purpose of training Polar Ice-Navigating seafarers. 8.0.1 clarifies the nature of India’s interest in the Arctic being scientific, environmental, economic as well as strategic in nature. India has a multi-dimensional approach to the region. 8.0.2 calls for close partnerships with countries of the Arctic region. While solely military in its mention, multiple of these objectives are possibly met by the terms of the RELOS agreement.
The real estate required by India for new stations, the economic or transport supplies that will be necessary, its need for training polar-ready personnel, its strategic interest in the Arctic and finally, its continued aim of having partnerships in the vital region are all goals that could potentially be met and deepened via the implementation of the RELOS agreement. A more integrated approach towards each other’s militaries, as per the agreement, has great strategic implications for India.
In the wake of growing global instability, the present uncertainties of the Arctic Council, the disruption in global supply chains due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and the West Asia war, as well as the already existing enduring ties between India and Russia, make the RELOS agreement particularly opportune. With the agreement in effect, India’s presence would expand in the Arctic Region, eventually bolstering its Arctic ambitions by giving it a chance to have a more long-term and integrated presence in the region. Moreover, the RELOS agreement is in line with India’s doctrine of Aatma Nirbhar Bharat and aptly embodies India’s present foreign policy of multi-alignment and strategic autonomy. In an increasingly multipolar world, by having similar agreements such as the LEMOA with the US, India effectively furthers its path to being Vishwamitra, a friend of the world. This approach offers a degree of independence to India while simultaneously deepening ties with partner nations. It is thus important to note that, however indirect, the agreement reinforces India’s Arctic mission. Although the RELOS agreement is a defence and logistics agreement, it is evident that the implications exist in tandem and go beyond just the stipulated domains, trickling into broader strategic areas that are of interest to India.
