Reuters: India's arms makers visit Russia, talk joint ventures

At least six executives from leading Indian arms companies visited Russia this year to discuss potential joint projects. This was reported by the agency Reuters citing three unnamed interlocutors with knowledge of the matter.

The meetings took place during the first visit of Indian defense business leaders to Russia after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. There has been no previous information about the visit of Indian business leaders to Russia.

The article states that the Indian government is seeking to reorient its longstanding defense ties with Russia by focusing on joint weapons development. However, any potential cooperation with Russia risks disrupting Indian defense companies' plans to jointly develop Western weapons as part of Prime Minister Modi's efforts to Narendra Modi to transform the country, one of the world's largest arms importers, into a global manufacturing center.

Western diplomats have previously stated that the main obstacle to the transfer of sensitive military technologies to India is its defense ties with Russia and the huge amount of Russian weapons used by the Indian military – about 36%.

The talks in Moscow were part of a visit by a delegation of Indian defense companies on October 29-30, led by Indian Defense Minister Sanjeev Kumar. The purpose of the trip was to prepare the ground for the visit of the Russian dictator Vladimir Putin to India on December 4-5.

The media noted that a representative of the Adani Group denied that the group's executives were present at the meetings. The Indian Ministry of Defense and other companies mentioned by the sources did not respond to requests for comment.

Reuters reported that the meetings discussed the possibility of producing spare parts for the MiG-29 fighter jet, Russian air defense systems and weapons, as well as Russia's proposal to set up manufacturing facilities in India to develop equipment that could potentially be exported to Moscow.

Russia has been India's largest arms supplier for decades, and during Putin's visit in early December, the two sides announced their agreement to refocus the partnership "on joint research and development, joint development and joint production of advanced defense technologies and systems" to support India's defense self-sufficiency.

The interlocutors said that the meetings were attended by a large delegation of representatives of defense units of Indian conglomerates, state-owned enterprises, and startups developing drones and artificial intelligence for military use.

The agency writes that the meeting was attended by the head of Bharat Forge, which is part of the Kalyani Group machine-building conglomerate and produces components for missiles and artillery guns. He participated in the talks as part of efforts to find suppliers or jointly develop components for Russian-made tanks and aircraft, as well as to explore potential future cooperation in the field of helicopters.

Also, present was the head of the advisory group of the Society of Indian Armaments Manufacturers, whose members include more than 500 arms and military equipment manufacturers, including the defense divisions of conglomerates Tata Sons, Larsen & Toubro and state-owned companies such as Bharat Electronics.

In 2024, Reuters reported that a subsidiary of Bharat Forge was one of three Indian companies exporting artillery shells to Europe.

Some of them were subsequently redirected to Ukraine, prompting a diplomatic protest from Moscow. However, Indian companies are in no hurry to enter into new deals with Russia because of the risk of secondary sanctions, said an Indian company executive.

• In April 2025, the GUR reported that Russian weapons a component made in India was found for the first time. The Hindustan Times wrote that Ukraine had officially raised the issue with the Indian Foreign Ministry at least twice after these details were revealed in the "shaheds" starting last year.
• In August, the intelligence community reported that Russia intends to expand cooperation with India in the military and technical spheres.