The Russian arms export has been rising steadily of late, with JSC Rosoboronexport, which until recently used to be the sole weapons trader for Russia on the international market, saying its total sales of military hardware exceeded $10.7 billion in 2011 – up $2 billion from the previous year.

The growth is expected to continue, mostly owing to the serious competitive advantages of Sukhoi and MiG fighter jets, the Yak-130 combat trainer, Mil and Kamov helicopters, Antey-2500, Buk-M2E, Tor-M2E, Pantsyr-S air defense systems and other advanced Russian weapons. In fact it is these systems that make up the backbone of the Rosoboronexport’s $33-35 billion portfolio of orders. Aircraft top the rating of best-selling Russian weapons, accounting for 51 per cent of the sales.

Although Russia has been making good progress on new markets, India remains its key partner as far as defense technologies are concerned.

The Indian-Russian defense cooperation can be traced back to 1961, when the first batch of Mi-4 helicopters was shipped to the South Asian country. Ever since Moscow and New Delhi have been attaching special importance to aviation technologiesin their military-technical partnership. Therefore, the largest-inscale joint programs, worth billions of dollars, are carried out in this particular area, and include the licensing of Su-30MKI production in India, the upgrade of India’s fleet of MiG-29s, the development of the Fifth-Generation Fighter Aircraft and the military transport aircraft, which might also be used for commercial purposes, and some others. These key projects seek to bring mutual benefit now and in years and decades to come.

One of the most critical things is that both nations are unambiguously upbeat about the fact that their militarytechnical cooperation has covered a long road from ordinary buy-and-sell relations to joint development and production of state-of-the-art pieces of weapons and materiel in just about five decades. No other partner has so far reached such a high level of trust and confidence in the cooperation with India as Russia has. Indeed, this is a really privileged strategic partnership: Russia offers things to India, which it is not going to share with anybody else. Moreover, lots of joint programs are in plans for decades in future. Which is also important, Russia has never attached any political strings to weapon supply, production licensing or upgrade programs. As a result it is only natural that the relationship between the two nations has been evolving stably and dynamically, and both Indians and Russians feel at ease working with each other.

Both sides are looking forward to deepening the existing ties, investing into the future of their cooperation. India continues buying Russian-made weapons, which is not just a tradition, but a purely pragmatic approach. The country’s Armed Forces need some ready-to-field systems, including aircraft now, and it is possible that some of them will be purchased from Russia that plans to win in the ongoing Indian tenders with its bids.

The most promising one is the Il-78MK-90 tanker-plane that has already passed the tests as part of the Indian contest for six such aircraft. The tanker meets India’s requirements entirely. At the same time, the aircraft of the Il-76/78 family proved effective in service with the Indian Air Force in transport, tanker and airborne warning and control roles. They earned a reputation for being reliable, easy-to-maintain and efficient. In addition, the new modification, Il-78MK-90, features more economical PS-90A-76 engines, a modified wing, an updated fly-by-wire system and avionics. Importantly, India has got requisite infrastructure to operate, accommodate and maintain the aircraft.

Rosoboronexport is also ready to offer a long lineup of Russian helicopters, which tend to become increasingly popular in the world. Probably the most successful example is the Mi-17V-5, already in service with the Indian Air Force. Also promising is the Ka-226T lightweight multirole helo, taking part in the contest for 197 scout and surveillance aerial vehicles for the Indian Army. A significant competitive advantage of the Russian bid is that it is offered together with a luring offset program. A favorite in another tender, Mi-26T2 easily lifts up to 20 tons of cargoes, leaving all rivals far behind.

In summary, even a shortlist of Indian-Russian cooperative endeavors demonstrates that the relations, built over the past several decades, are really multifaceted, time-proven and based on the principles of mutual respect and benefit. Whilst cutting-edge technologies are the core elements of the partnership, it is confidence of partners in each other that makes this partnership real fruitful. And this is what really matters!