India Expects to Start IGA with Russia for Defence Spare parts
Last year, India had signed Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) with Russia for manufacturing of spare parts of Russian defence equipment supplied to India.
So, now this year Coronavirus pandemic has made everything quite difficult. Instead, India is expecting Russia that the IGA with Russia to manufacture spare parts of defence equipment will start soon.
The forum, organised by the Russian Defence Ministry, has been started at the Patriot Park near Moscow, where India has also participated.
“Despite the complexities of the Coronavirus pandemic, India felt it was very important for us to come and participate in ARMY-2020. We would have liked to have participated with a much bigger delegation,” Indian ambassador to Russia DB Venkatesh Varma told to a Russian magazine.
He pointed out that India would have liked its participation to be bigger at the exhibition, but at least there is some participation and this is of great significance considering the global situation.
Besides the exhibition the forum is also hosting discussions among global military officials, researchers and defence industry experts about the application of 3D technologies in designing, manufacturing and operating weapons and military equipment,
The Indian Secretary of Defence Production held meetings with the Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation (FSMTC), Rosoboronexport and the Russian deputy minister for Industry and Trade Oleg Ryazansev. The Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yury Borisov and the CEO of Rostec Sergey Chemezov Visited India’s pavilion on the first day of the Forum.
While focusing on US reservations on S-400 systems that Russia will supply to India, Varma said, “India has a strategic partnership with Russia that has been longstanding. Recently we have established relationship of strategic partnership with the United States. We do not see any contradiction between the two. India would like to promote relations with both Russia and the United States. With respect to defence cooperation, India is an independent country, we make decisions on each case based on its own merits, and I’m sure that both Russia and the United States respect the fact that India makes such decisions in its own interest.”
