India to Make Russian Defence Spares Domestically
New Delhi: Russia has agreed to promote joint production of military hardware and spare parts in India for the maintenance of weapons and defense equipment of Russian origin. Ways to strengthen bilateral defense cooperation in general came to the fore during the summit talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday.
It has been a long-standing complaint of the armed forces that the procurement of critical spare parts and equipment from Russia takes a long time, affecting the maintenance of military systems procured from that country.
“Both sides agreed to promote joint production in India of spare parts, components, aggregates and other products for maintenance of Russian-origin weapons and defense equipment under the Make in India program through technology transfer,” the joint statement said. The statement was included.
The statement said that both sides agreed to establish joint ventures to meet the needs of the Indian armed forces and subsequently export to mutually friendly third countries.
The joint statement said that the India-Russia defense partnership has been reoriented towards joint development and joint production of advanced defense technology and systems.
Defense Minister Rajnath Singh and his Russian counterpart Andrey Belousov decided to expand bilateral defense cooperation in their meeting on Thursday.
At the meeting, the Indian side showed great interest in purchasing additional batches of S-400 missile systems from Moscow to strengthen its combat capability.
In October 2018, India signed a US$5 billion deal with Russia to purchase five S-400 air defense missile systems; despite a US warning that continuing with the agreement could invite US sanctions under the provisions of the Countering America’s Adversaries Sanctions Act (CAATSA).
Three squadrons have already been delivered.
S-400 systems played a very important role in Operation Sindoor. India may also consider procuring S-500 missile systems from Russia.
During the Modi-Putin talks, the two sides also agreed to continue jointly developing bilateral trade agreement systems through the use of national currencies.
Additionally, the two sides agreed to continue consultations on ensuring interoperability of national payment systems, financial messaging systems and central bank digital currency platforms.
The joint statement said Modi and Putin appreciated the intensification of the ongoing joint work between India and the Eurasian Economic Union on a free trade agreement on goods covering sectors of common interest.
It was also stated that they instructed both parties to intensify their negotiation efforts on a mutually beneficial agreement on investment promotion and protection.
India and Russia also welcomed steps to ensure long-term fertilizer supplies to India and discussed possible establishment of joint ventures in this field.
