KEEPING AN ARMS DISTANCE

India's military trade with Russia has declined due to increased procurement from the West and emphasis on indigenous material. But with much of its equipment still of Russian origin, New Delhi has to keep up strategic-defence ties with Moscow too

- PRADIP R. SAGAR

India and Russia share decades of close strategic alliance. However, defence sales and military-technical cooperation—one of the pillars of the ‘special and privileged strategic partnership’— between the two nations have taken a backseat. In recent years, India has been reducing its reliance on Russian defence equipment and increasingly turning to western allies like the US and France as well as its domestic arms industry to meet its growing needs. This was evident during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s two-day visit to Moscow on July 8 and 9 for the 22nd annual summit between the two nations. In the inaugural bilateral visit of his third term in office, PM Modi held both delegation-level talks and one-on-one discussions with President Vladimir Putin. On the back of bilateral trade reaching an all-time high of $65.70 billion (Rs 55,040 crores) in 2023-24—largely due to India buying large amounts of Russian oil—the focus was on economic aspects. Matters relating to energy, trade, manufacturing, technology and fertilisers were discussed. Announcement of a big defence deal was missing.