EXPLAINER
Russia and India have an extended historical past of collaborating on defence. What weapons have they traded earlier than, and what is going to they talk about this time?
India’s prime minister, Narendra Modi, is making his first go to to Russia for the reason that invasion of Ukraine to debate points that embrace defence and weapons offers.
The small print of any new arms offers to be struck between the 2 nations have but to emerge, however it’s understood that Russia’s want for weapons and ammunition for the warfare in Ukraine is driving talks. Modi is ready to supply substantial Indian industrial help to Russia for the Ukraine warfare in trade for power and navy know-how. The help could be sensible however would cease in need of India publicly backing Russia’s warfare effort.
The journey on Monday and Tuesday comes as a reminder to the world that the ties between India and Russia – notably with regards to defence and weapons – return many years and stay robust.
What’s the historical past of India-Russia defence offers?
For the previous decade, India has targeted on boosting its personal military-industrial complicated, telling worldwide defence contractors that “Made in India” is a precedence and saying know-how transfers to Indian corporations are a core a part of any deal, whether or not with Russia or some other place.
Nonetheless, India’s armed forces nonetheless rely closely on armoured divisions and 97 % of its 3,740 tanks are Russian-made.
Whereas India has tried to diversify its defence purchases and partially wean itself off Russian arms, it’s primarily Russian corporations which are serving to India’s defence industries mature at a fast fee.
A day earlier than Modi left for Moscow this week, Russia’s state export firm, Rostec, signed an settlement to fabricate superior armour-piercing “Mango” tank shells in India for the T-90 tank.
How else have India and Russia cooperated on defence prior to now?
Their defence cooperation has been substantial. The Brahmos supersonic antiship missile, as an illustration, was collectively designed by Indian and Russian engineers for the Indian armed forces and first examined in 2001.
Brahmos is the merger of the names of the Brahmaputra and Moskva rivers, signifying the cooperation between the 2 nations. The missile is quick and highly effective and might ship a 300kg (660lb) warhead at 3 times the pace of sound with an accuracy right down to lower than a single metre (3.3ft). It has since been exported to the Philippines.
Russian joint ventures with India additionally embrace making 35,000 Kalashnikov AK203 assault rifles for the Indian military, the licensed manufacturing of superior T-90 tanks and Sukhoi Su-30-MKI fourth-generation fighter jets and upkeep services for India’s MiG-29 fighter jets. Additionally they collaborate on making the Konkurs antitank guided missile.
What else will Modi and Putin talk about?
Low-cost Russian oil has been a mainstay of India’s economic system for greater than a 12 months. It has been a significant recipient of US- and EU-sanctions-busting petroleum shipments.
Nuclear energy can also be on the playing cards on the talks in Moscow. A number of of India’s nuclear reactors are Russian-built, and talks are ongoing for India to purchase each Russian floating and maritime nuclear reactors, helpful for distant areas and likewise for submarines and bigger, longer-range naval vessels.
The place will Russia supply weapons it wants for warfare in Ukraine?
Moscow is determined to fulfil its armed forces’ fixed demand for artillery and tank ammunition of every type for its warfare in Ukraine.
Russia’s armed forces conservatively fireplace 8,000 rounds per day. At a mean value of $4,000 every, Russia is spending $32 million each single day in its effort to interrupt the impasse on Ukraine’s battlefields.
Whereas Russia’s economic system is technically on a warfare footing, Putin has nonetheless wanted to court docket North Korea and Vietnam, each operators of Russian-calibre artillery, and each with giant home munitions factories, particularly for the much-needed 152mm shell.
With continued help for Ukraine being questioned in america and European and Turkish munitions factories selecting up the slack, Ukraine and Russia are actually more and more reliant on different nations for assist in offering the huge quantities of ammunition wanted to maintain the opposite at bay.
Each nations are searching for new companions within the hopes of outproducing the opposite and bringing the extreme firepower they assume is required to show the tide in what has change into a static battle. Russia is hoping that, together with North Korea and Vietnam, Indian trade will help present Russia with the instruments it must defeat Ukraine.
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