India and Russia explore ways to increase defence equipment production

India's Defence Minister Rajnath Singh met his Russian counterpart Sergey Shoigu in New Delhi on Friday to discuss "various issues of bilateral defence cooperation, including military ties" between the two historic allies. 

The ministers "discussed wide-ranging issues of bilateral defence cooperation, including military ties and industrial partnership. They also discussed the participation of the Russian defence industry in the 'Make in India' initiative and ways to give it further impetus," the Indian foreign ministry said in a statement. 

The meeting, which took place on the margins of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) defence chiefs' meeting in the Indian capital, also served to reiterate their commitment "to strengthening the partnership", the statement added. 

India maintains a close alliance with Moscow, one of its main suppliers of military equipment and from whom it continues to buy some of its oil despite sanctions and international pressure. 

According to several analysts, the close relationship between the nations, and India's strong support, is partly due to this high dependence, 60-70% of its military equipment, and Moscow's containment of one of its main rivals, China. 

This historic relationship explains India's neutrality in the Ukraine conflict, having repeatedly refrained from condemning the Russian invasion in front of the UN General Assembly. 

Instead, the Indian government has consistently called for peace and dialogue to end the conflict. 

Since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, several Russian ministers have visited India, including Russian Trade and Industry Minister Denis Manturov and Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. 

These visits were reciprocated last November by the Indian Foreign Minister, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, with an official trip to Moscow amid international scrutiny over India's neutrality in the conflict. 

A few months earlier, in December 2021, Russian President Vladimir Putin visited India, where he and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi signed nearly 30 agreements and commitments to strengthen defence partnerships. 

That same year, India approved a plan to manufacture 500,000 Russian AK-203 rifles locally, a project with an estimated investment of $700 million that will allow New Delhi to manufacture the assault rifles domestically.