Article Posted on : - Oct 25, 2010

Personnel of Indian and Russian armies during the joint Indo-Russian military exercise Indra-2010 at Chaubattia in Uttarakhand on Saturday. PTI Photo

CHAUBATTIA, UTTARAKHAND (PTI): Describing India as a "super power in the making", Russia said it was "not worried" over Indian armed forces buying military equipment from the US and pledged its support to see the Asian giant "strong militarily."

Apart from expressing surprise over US sanctioning Pakistan with a USD 2-billion military aid just ahead of US President Barack Obama's visit to India in early November, Russia also promised that it would give the best military equipment it has to New Delhi.

"We understand India is a super power in the making and India can choose which better equipment that suits her. We do not think in terms of fighting for India's (defence purchase) orders...fighting with Americans...no. So if you want those huge cargo planes you can buy them from Americans. Maybe they are better. We are not worried," Russian Federation Ambassador to India Alexander M Kadakin said on Sunday.

He was interacting with a group of Indian journalists on his visit here to witnesses the Indo-Russian army exercise Indra-2010.

"But you are aware that Russia has a multi-faceted and diverse cooperation in the military field with India. It is not a secret that in cooperation with India we are producing the best supersonic cruise missile in the world - the BRAHMOS.”

"It is not a secret that your submarine fleet is equipped with Russian submarines. It is not a secret that you fly our airplanes...not only the old ones, which you are producing, but also the new razor-edge technologies," he said, pointing out that his country had chosen India to co-develop the fifth generation stealth supersonic fighter jets.

Referring to the bilateral agreement for the Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA) signed between Russian Defence Minister Anatoly Serdyukov and his Indian counterpart A K Antony in Delhi earlier this month, Kadakin said, "Ask the American if they will sell F-35s to India."

He said the FGFA would be "designed by both India and Russia and produced in India also," he said it was not just in fighter aircraft, any other military technology that India wanted, Moscow was cooperating fully.

"When the Minister was here recently about 10 days ago, a very important agreement was reached about the new generation stealth fighter aircraft, which is being designed by both India and Russia and produced here in India also.

"We have diverse military relations with India. So, take any other field...tanks...whatever you take or choose we are cooperating. That is so good, because we have always considered and consider India to be our best friend.

Kadakin said: "We are interested that India should be strong, not only industrially and economically...It is becoming very strong, economically and we are rejoicing together with our Indian friends. But we also want India to be strong militarily."

To a query on the Military Technical Commission meeting that Antony and Serdyukov attended in New Delhi recently, he said they had discussed many proposals and agreements for future bilateral defence relations.

"You may ask Americans are coming, French are coming, and many other countries are coming. But we are not worried. Because we have a very deep-rooted, long established and very functional and very positive cooperation between the militaries of the two countries," he said.

Pointing out to Indra-2010 joint military exercise, he said it was also "an indication of the high degree of confidence and trust we have in each other and trust that we also exercise in combating international terrorism."

"As I said before, we are not only friends; we are allies in combating international terrorism. You know, I will not name any country, you know from where it comes in your vicinity. We also suffer from those people who bring harm to India, they also bring harm to Russia," he added.

Asked about the recent important military deals such as the P-8I maritime patrol plane and C-130J transport aircraft going the US way, the Ambassador asked Indians to look at what Moscow had done.

"Look what we did for India, together with Israel. We produced AWACS planes and we have a product of three countries -- India, Russia and Israel. So the world is changing. Well, I don't know, but America does not have the technology of BRAHMOS. If they start today, it will take them seven years to produce what Russia and India are producing today. I don't think that they have given any vital technologies, you know," he said.

BRAHMOS is a supersonic cruise missile considered the best in the world designed and produced by India and Russia.

India had recently got delivery of an Airborne Early Warning and Control Systems (AWACS), a beyond horizon airborne radar of Israeli origin on Russian IL-76 platform, of which three have been ordered and two more are to added in the future.

Whereas, "they (Americans) have given USD 2 billion aid to rearm Pakistan just before the visit of their boss (President Obama) to India. That's what I read. What we are giving to India, we are not giving to anyone.

"Even the Sukhois (fighter jets) that China is producing (with license from Russia) is very much different from what Sukhoi (IAF's frontline combat planes) India is producing with license from us," he said.