( CNN ) When Barack Obama heads to India this weekend to meet Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi , he will be both the first U.S. president to attend as Chief Guest and the first U.S. president to visit India twice during his term of office . But despite Obama 's warm rhetoric and talk of U.S.-India ties being a `` defining partnership of the 21st century , '' the man of the hour when I was visiting India last month was a different world leader : Vladimir Putin . `` Russia has been India 's foremost defense partner through decades . ... Russia will remain our foremost defense partner , '' Modi explained during the Russian President 's visit , adding that the `` strategic partnership '' between the two countries was `` incomparable . '' These comments followed Modi 's claim to Putin at the BRICS summit last summer that : `` Even a child in India , if asked to say who is India 's best friend , will reply it is Russia because Russia has been with India in times of crisis . '' Throw in India 's soothing expression of `` understanding '' over Russia 's actions in Ukraine , and it is hard not to wonder whether Modi 's words are more than just the kinds of diplomatic platitudes you might expect from a gracious host . Indeed , even as Modi signed off a speech in Central Park with the words `` May the force be with you , '' I was reminded of another classic American film series -- `` Back to the Future '' -- and wondered whether Modi 's encouraging words to Putin might reflect a certain nostalgia for days gone by . True , since the fall of the Soviet Union and India 's economic reforms , the world 's two largest democracies have done their best to put the days of Cold War estrangement behind them : The United States has cooperated with India extensively on terrorism and maritime security , and India conducts more military exercises with the United States ( India 's largest defense supplier ) than any other nation . In addition , the United States has done the heavy lifting in trying to bring India into the international civil nuclear community . And even India 's traditional concern over the U.S.-Pakistan relationship seems to have eased in recent years . Yet as the State Department has noted , the India-Russia defense deals announced during Putin 's visit come at a particularly bad time . For the first time since World War II , Europe has a leader in Putin who evidently believes it is acceptable to alter international boundaries through the use of force . One would think an India disputing Chinese and Pakistani territorial claims to entire Indian states would be particularly wary of the embrace of a former KGB agent who was so quick to force his own way . But even setting aside India 's inconsistency on this , it is unclear what practical benefits India should see in wanting to so closely ally itself with a country whose currency is being severely devalued , whose economy is reeling from falling oil prices and international sanctions , whose trade with India is less than a tenth of that with the United States , and whose planes India has bought , even as questions are now raised about their reliability . In fact , the reality is that since the Cold War , Russia has been largely missing in action in regard to India . The views of Russia expressed during the Putin visit therefore seem largely formed by Cold War relations between India and the Soviet Union rather than present reality . But perhaps most importantly of all , this apparent nostalgia raises the question of how India 's policy toward Russia can be reconciled with Indian values of democracy , the rule of law , and individual liberty -- values shared with the United States and that are often cited by leaders and citizens , including the 3.8 million Indian Americans who have helped build the natural partnership between the United States and India . Because unfortunately , these democratic values are being steadily eroded in Russia under Putin ( the criminal prosecution of opposition leader Alexei Navalny being but the latest example ) , who has derided talk of them as American attempts to impose a sort of cultural imperialism . Both India and the United States need to work with Russia on a variety of issues . But this no time for reverting to relations of a bygone era . Most Indians , and a large number of Americans , were not even alive when the Soviet Union and India were the best of friends -- an era the United States and India should be working to put behind them by looking to a future in which U.S. and Indian school children will recognize their respective nations as best friends . For this to happen , the U.S. and India must act accordingly .
Barack Obama arrives for a visit in Russia recent years . Guest : Since World War II , India largely missing in action over India .