EAM Jaishankar reaffirms defense cooperation with Russia, highlights past preference for arms supply to Pakistan

On Tuesday, the External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar reaffirmed India’s defense and trade cooperation with Russia, noting the shift in the trend of arms supply to India. He mentioned that many Western countries used to supply arms to Pakistan rather than India in the past, but this has changed in the last decade, with the USA, Russia, France, and Israel becoming the main suppliers.

During an interview with a leading German economic daily, Handelsblatt, at the Munich Security Conference in Germany, EAM Jaishankar highlighted the imbalances in the world’s supply chains, describing the global economic model as unstable and unfair.

Jaishankar emphasized that Europe must understand that India’s perspective on Russia differs from Europe’s view of Moscow. He pointed out that, just as he doesn’t expect Europe to share his view of China, Europe should acknowledge the natural differences in relationships, especially concerning Russia.

The statement on India-Russia ties comes amid the approaching two-year mark of the Russia-Ukraine war (February 24). While the West has imposed sanctions against Moscow, India has faced criticism for continuing to buy oil from Russia and has consistently abstained from voting on resolutions against Russia in the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).

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