NEW DELHI, India: India has announced that it would accelerate its manufacturing of military equipment, including helicopters, tank engines and missiles, to offset any potential shortfall from its main supplier, Russia.

India depends on Russia for nearly 60 percent of its defense equipment, and the war in Ukraine has caused uncertainty about future supplies.

Defense Ministry officials said India, with the world’s second-largest army, fourth-largest air force and seventh-largest navy, cannot sustain itself through imports.

While releasing a list of military equipment that will be produced domestically and no longer imported, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh said,
“Our objective is to develop India as a defense manufacturing hub.”

According to the Defense Ministry’s website, military orders worth $28 billion are likely to be placed with local public and private defense manufacturers over the next five years.

During a visit to India by Russian President Vladimir Putin in 2021, Former Lt. Gen. D.S. Hooda said the two countries agreed to shift some manufacturing to India to meet its requirements, adding helicopters, corvettes, tank engines, missiles and airborne early warning systems will eventually be be made locally.

To meet its short-term requirements, India may purchases from former Soviet republics and Warsaw pact countries, the ministry’s officials stated.

Last week, External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar told his visiting British counterpart, Liz Truss, that India will now focus on “Made in India,” and the two countries discussed ways to strengthen their defense cooperation, in a bid to reduce India’s strategic dependence on Russia.

Defense analyst Rahul Bedi said India is waiting for deliveries of Russian missile systems, frigates, an Akula-class nuclear-powered submarine and assault rifles.

While the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi aims to achieve greater self-reliance, India does not have a strong industrial base for manufacturing military equipment.