| dc.description.abstract | The purpose of the present study is to meticulously trace the origin and subsequent
strengthening of the Indo-Russian defence ties that finally culminated into the
formation of Indo-Russian joint ventures with the deal on BrahMos missile. The year
1991 has been specifically chosen because it marked the end of the cold war and the
disintegration of the Soviet Union.
The study first brings to the surface the fact that in British India, the country was
highly dependent upon the British weapons and ammunitions. Thus, the possible role
of other countries in the Indian defence market was completely ruled out. India gained
its independence in 1947 which coincided with the beginning of the Cold War period.
The study then moves to explore the cold war conditions under which India developed
strategic relations with Russia. Bilateral relations between the two countries were
established on 1950's. It was due to the cold war conditions coupled with India's
adoption of a mixed economic system and a planned economy that brought the two
nations closer to each other. Bilateral relations since the very inception were focused
on the defence trade and because of this reason the relations soon culminated into
strategic one. In the due course of the Cold War, as the U.S. role in the South Asian
affairs tilted heavily in favour of Pakistan, Russia saw it as an opportunity for its
defence sector and also for itself to expand its sphere of influence in the South Asian
region. Since then the arms have been imported from Russia.
v
From 1960 to 1990 India imported conventional arms and ammunitions worth U.S. $
ten to fifteen billion with some of the major arms being transferred as MiG, AN-12, MI-
4 and other arms. The depth of Indo-Russian strategic relations was at its peak in the
1971 India Pakistan war when the two nations signed the treaty of friendship. Though
the study analyses the defence deals made by the two countries in a great depth, it
also examines the individual role of the leadership of both the countries in taking the
relationship ahead. Stalin was apprehensive about India's role in the region during the
cold war and it was labeled as 'pro-capitalist'. A favorable shift in the policy towards
India was seen during the reign of Khrushchev. Relations under the Indian leadership
of Nehru gained an impetus.
The problems that have been faced by the Indian defence sector are delays in the
delivery of the consignments, high prices of the Russian imports as compared to the
earlier Soviet arms supplies, Russian arms being less competitive than their western
counterparts etc. All these issues pose a serious challenge for India.
In 2000 India decided to diversify its sources of arms. With this, Israel, Germany, U.S.
and other European nations were being viewed as potential partners. It was during
this phase that Russia also sought new partners for itself and it forged new
relationships with China and Pakistan. Thus, both the countries shifted their attention
from each other and focused primarily on the market forces that played its role in the
defence sector. India, however, could not do away with Russian technology for its
defence equipments because of its past imports- finding a partner country for spare
parts would have been tough. Thus, we see that despite India's quest for new
relationships in the defence sector, the Indian army's arms and ammunitions is largely
Russian dominated.
After tracing the historical roots of the defence relations of the two nations, the study
then moves to analyze joint ventures in the defence sector-yet another important
aspect of the defence bilateral relations of the two countries. Agreements for the joint
ventures were materialized in 1998 whereby both the nations agreed on brahmos co
production. This agreement initiated a new chapter for the Indo-Russian defence
cooperation.
vi
The study concludes with a brief summary of the dissertation and recommends that
India should engage with Russia without deviating from current programs with other
suppliers. Russia should manufacture the competitive arms and deliver to India at
reasonable prices and on time. India and Russia should focus on long run military
contracts to maintain the time tested friendship. | en_US |
