India – Russia Partnership

India possibly realises only Russia will be ready to supply it with some "sensitive" military hardware.

The expansive Indo-Russian defence partnership, which has already zoomed past $35 billion since the 1960s, marked a new high on Tuesday with the two nations inking the Preliminary Design Contract (PDC) for joint development of the fifth-generation fighter aircraft (FGFA). The PDC may be only worth $295 million but it will lead to India spending around $35 billion over the next two decades to induct between 250 and 300 of advanced stealth fighters from 2020 onwards in what will be its biggest-ever defence project. The Indian FGFA or "perspective multi-role fighter" will be based on the Russian single-seater FGFA Sukhoi T-50, a prototype of which is already flying, but will be tailored to the IAF requirements. The IAF wants a twin-seater FGFA powered by a new engine "with a higher thrust". India and Russia propose to market the FGFA to "friendly third" countries at a later stage.

India has consciously diversified its defence imports since the 1999 Kargil conflict, turning towards countries like Israel, France, UK and now increasingly the US. Israel, in particular, is snapping at the heels of Russia, notching up sales worth over $10 billion since Kargil.

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