- This particular subject is in the news of late courtesy of the Russian invasion of Ukraine which shows no signs of coming to a halt in the immediate future. As the global community grapples with the repercussions of the incursions, the Indian establishment is encountering varied challenges from many fronts, including the diplomatic one. Of course, the international society is not happy with the stand of the Indian Government in choosing to not criticize/condemn the Russian aggression on the back of UN-sponsored resolutions. Further, the Indian positioning vis-à-vis abstaining from the voting intended to bring upon pressure on the Russian strongman has not gone too well with several leading countries too, including the United States of America.
PC: Patti Domm
- Indeed, India has a historic and pragmatic reason for pursuing this line keeping in mind the geopolitical as well as geostrategic necessities to stay neutral. It is well known that the Indian military inventory majorly comprises Russian-made weaponry constantly requiring maintenance, upgrades, and spares to keep it battle-ready. This being the case, there is no way New Delhi is expected to antagonize Moscow by choosing to join the international chorus to deplore the latter. Interestingly, while speaking to the UK Parliament’s foreign affairs committee, the British foreign secretary said that India’s stance on the Russian invasion of Ukraine is the result of New Delhi’s dependence on Moscow, and suggested the way forward is closer to India-UK ties.
- Note that the new Western sanctions imposed on Russia, such as excluding several Russian banks from the SWIFT international payment system, mean a considerable strain on India’s traditional defense ties with Moscow. However, exchanging dependency on Russia for dependence on the West is also no solution for India either. Remember, India has made concerted attempts to diversify its defense imports over the last decade or so. For example, the Indian Air Force today heavily relies on the American C-17 and C-130J Super Hercules in its heavy-lift transport fleet which usually used to be made up of Russian AN-32 and IL-76s.
PC: Todd Prince
- The helicopter fleet to have inducted the American Chinook and Apache in significant numbers. Nonetheless, cost competitiveness, proven battlefield performance, and familiarity with consecutive generations of servicemen still make Russian platforms preferable. More pertinently, there is the issue of technology transfer where none of the countries is willing to share cutting-edge military tech. Russia has been slightly more open to helping India develop strategic platforms such as cruise missiles and nuclear submarines. In reality, even with this Russian help, India today is in no position to build assets like a fifth-generation fighter from scratch.
- Going forward, India has to maintain a diversified defense portfolio, because switching out all Russian defense equipment for Western imports is not feasible as well as advisable. As such, in the medium-to-long term, especially given the sanctions on Russia and Moscow’s growing strategic convergence with Beijing, it is incumbent India develops its own indigenous military-industrial complex, capable of serving various needs including cutting-edge platforms. Unmistakably, this is the only way to have a truly independent defense and strategic policy that will stand the country in good stead. Otherwise, we will perpetually find ourselves in an unenviable position making a tight-rope walk.
