Despite pressure, India consciously decided to deepen engagement with Russia: Rajnath Singh

The Defence Minister, who is in Moscow for a military cooperation meeting, also met with Russian President Vladimir Putin; cooperation agreement for 2021-31 will give impetus to ‘Make in India’, says Russian Defence Minister.

Despite geopolitical challenges and great pressure both in public and in private, India has made a conscious decision to not only continue its close engagement with Russia, but also to deepen and expand the cooperation, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said in Moscow on Tuesday (December 10, 2024). India has always stood by its Russian friends and will continue to do so in future, he said later in a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

We will always be with our Russian colleagues, Mr. Singh said, addressing the 21st India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Military & Military Technical Cooperation (IRIGC-M&MTC), which he co-chaired with his Russian counterpart Andrey Belousov in Moscow.Mr. Belousov said that operationalisation of the India-Russia military technical cooperation agreement for 2021-31 will give necessary impetus to the ‘Make in India’ drive. “At the end, the two Ministers signed the protocol of the 21st IRIGC-M&MTC meeting, highlighting the ongoing and prospective areas of cooperation,” a Defence Ministry statement said.

After the meeting, Mr. Singh called on Mr. Putin at the Kremlin and the meeting lasted for almost an hour, defence sources said...Sources said that in the meeting with Mr. Putin, Mr. Singh raised the delay in deliveries of S-400 air defence systems and requested that they be expedited. As reported earlier, Russia has assured to deliver the two remaining S-400 regiments in 2025.

The Defence Minister’s visit happened to coincide with the overthrow of Syrian President Bashar-Al-Assad, with Russian media reports suggesting that he has been granted asylum by Russia and has landed in the county with his family. Commenting on the “productive” IRIGC-M&MTC meeting in a social media post, Mr. Singh said: “Reviewing the full range of bilateral defence ties, we discussed ways to deepen cooperation between both the countries. We are committed to further strengthen India-Russia Special and Privileged Strategic Partnership.”

He emphasised that the India-Russia relationship is very strong, and has lived up to the responsibilities of a special and privileged strategic partnership. The Defence Minister said that India was determined to extend the capabilities of its domestic defence industry across domains and industrial collaboration. He stressed on new opportunities for enhancing the participation of Russian industries in ‘Make in India’ projects.

However, several major deals — including deliveries of the S-400 long range air defence systems and the Krivak class stealth frigates, as well as supplies of spares and components — have seen significant delays since the beginning of Russia’s war in Ukraine in February 2022.

The INS Tushil that was commissioned at Kaliningrad on Monday is the first of two stealth frigates under construction for the Indian Navy in Russia. The INS Tamal, the second frigate expected to be delivered to India early next year, will likely be the last warship (not submarine) that Russia will construct for India; all warships are now manufactured domestically. A nuclear attack submarine (SSN), Chakra-III, leased by India and now under construction could also well be the last submarine that India imports from Russia, given its current modernisation plan.The Russian Defence Minister emphasised the deepening relationship between the two countries, based on mutual trust. He congratulated Mr. Singh on the commissioning of the INS Tushil. Mr. Singh also invited Mr. Belousov to visit India to co-chair the 22nd session of the IRIGC-M&MTC in 2025. The invitation was accepted, the Defence Ministry said.

Before meeting, Mr. Singh inspected a Guard of Honour at the Russian Defence Ministry in Central Moscow. Earlier, he laid a wreath at the ‘Tomb of the Unknown Soldier’ in Moscow to honour the memory of Soviet soldiers killed during World War II.