Reports
Contested Ground: Russia’s Parallel Engagement in India and the Risks to Europe’s Economic Security
India’s emergence as the world’s fastest-growing major economy has made it a central node in global manufacturing, advanced research, digital infrastructure, and defence production. Europe has responded accordingly, building long-term supply chain, R&D, and defence manufacturing stakes in India. The January 2026 EU–India Free Trade Agreement and accompanying Security and Defence Partnership have now formalised that relationship. Similarly, the UK–India Free Trade Agreement, which entered into force in July 2026, is expected to significantly boost the economic links between the two countries.
Russia, meanwhile, is pursuing the same ground.
Strider’s report – Contested Ground: Russia’s Parallel Engagement in India and the Risks to Europe’s Economic Security – report uncovering how Russia is circumventing sanctions to access sensitive components through Indian intermediaries, exploiting the manufacturing, trade, and research ecosystems that power Europe's relationship with India.
Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, more than 50,000 sensitive goods, or goods that could have dual-use applicability, have reached Russian defence companies via Indian supply chains. These include fibre optic components and high-performance processors that can be used in advanced military systems, including unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), missiles, and aerospace technologies.
Many of these goods originated in European economies.
- Between 2022 and 2025, there was a 180% increase in UK-origin sensitive goods exported from India to Russia when compared to 2019 to 2021.
- During that same time period, there was a 455% and a 131% increase in sensitive goods originating from Sweden and Switzerland, respectively.
- There was also a sharp increase in these same types of goods from allied, non-European origin countries. From 2022 to 2025, there was a 529% increase from Australia, a 459% increase from the United States, a 253% increase from Japan, and a 180% increase from Canada.
As India deepens its role as a global manufacturing and import hub for Western-origin goods, the country enhances its attractiveness to Russia as an intermediary node in Moscow’s sanctions mitigation strategy. For European firms operating in India, the risk lies in inadvertent exposure.
The report concludes by recommending actions leaders in both the public and private sector can take to identify and manage risk within global commercial environments, such as expanded supply chain transparency, end-use monitoring, and strong alignment between commercial strategy and economic security policy.
The full report, Contested Ground: Russia’s Parallel Engagement in India and the Risks to Europe’s Economic Security, is available here in UK English.
The report is available in U.S. English here.
