Top Indian arms makers held rare meetings in Russia on potential joint ventures, sources say
The meetings took place during India’s defense sector leaders’ first visit to Russia since Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. The visit by defense industry leaders was not previously reported. The Indian government is trying to reorient decades-old defense ties with Russia to focus on joint development of weapons.
Any possible cooperation with Russia risks disrupting plans by Indian defense firms to jointly develop Western weapons as part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s drive to make India, one of the world’s biggest arms importers, a global manufacturing hub.
Western diplomats have previously said that the main obstacle to the transfer of sensitive military technology to India is its defense ties with Russia and the large amount of Russian-origin weapons used by the Indian army (about 36% in total).
The talks in Moscow were held during the October 29-30 visit of an Indian defense-industrial delegation led by Indian Defense Production Minister Sanjeev Kumar, aimed at laying the groundwork for Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit to India on December 4-5.
A spokesman for Adani Group denied that executives from any of its companies attended the meetings. India’s defense ministry and other companies cited by the sources did not respond to requests for comment.
JOINT PRODUCTION IN INDIA Two of the sources and another industry executive said the meetings discussed the potential to produce spare parts for the Mikoyan MiG-29 fighter jet and other Russian-origin air defense and weapons systems, as well as Russia’s proposal to set up production units in India to develop equipment that could potentially be exported to Moscow.
They spoke on condition of anonymity, citing the sensitivity of the issue.
Russia has been India’s largest arms supplier for decades and during Putin’s visit, the two sides agreed to reorient their partnership towards “joint research and development, co-development and joint production of advanced defense technology and systems” to bolster India’s defense self-reliance, he said.
INDIAN EXECUTIVES IN MOSCOW
Sources said the meetings were attended by a large delegation comprising defense units of Indian conglomerates, state-owned firms as well as start-ups involved in developing unmanned aerial vehicles and artificial intelligence for military use.
An executive from Kalyani Group’s engineering firm Bharat Forge, which makes components for missiles and artillery, attended the meetings as part of efforts to source or jointly develop components for Russian-origin tanks and aircraft, as well as explore potential future cooperation on helicopters, two of the sources said.
Adani Defense and Aviation, a unit of billionaire Gautam Adani’s conglomerate Adani Group, which transports apples to airports, is represented by Chief Executive Officer Ashish Rajvanshi, sources said.
The meeting was also attended by an executive from the advisory group of the Defense Manufacturers Association of India, which lists more than 500 arms and military equipment manufacturers, including defense weapons from Tata Sons, Larsen & Toubro conglomerates and state-owned firms such as Bharat Electronics, as members.
SANCTION RISK
Reuters reported in 2024 that a Bharat Forge subsidiary was among three Indian firms exporting artillery shells to Europe, some of which were then diverted to Ukraine, prompting a diplomatic protest from Moscow.
However, an Indian executive said Indian companies would be hesitant to make new deals with Russia due to the risk of secondary sanctions.
While India could resort to diplomatic assistance and lobbying to provide some protection against sanctions, an Indian defense official said firms must take political risks into account themselves.
