India is believed to have conveyed to the United States that the alternatives to Russian weapons were too expensive, news agency Bloomberg reported.
The report quoting people aware of India’s recent exchanges with the US following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, said India informed US Assistant Secretary of State Victoria Nuland of the drawbacks of alternatives to Russian weapons.
India informed Nuland that the alternatives to Russian weapons were too expensive, the report said. In addition, Russian companies are more willing to set up joint ventures with Indian companies that include some technology transfer, something US defense firms are reluctant to do, they said.
Foreign and defense ministers of the US and India will meet in Washington on Monday and Tuesday for the first two-plus-two dialog since Joe Biden took office, India’s Ministry of External Affairs said at its weekly briefing Thursday.
Apart from defense cooperation, Vladimir Putin’s attack on Ukraine and the ensuing sanctions will also be discussed at these meetings, the report quoted the people aware of the development as saying.
Tensions between the US and India have risen in recent weeks over Narendra Modi’s reluctance to criticize Putin, which has complicated a budding security partnership between the democracies in countering China’s influence.
Published By – Damandeep Singh
Edited By-Kritika Kashyap
