Russia - Pakistan military deals

Pakistan signs contracts for the purchase of Russian weapons

As reported by the RIA Novosti news agency, Russia and Pakistan have signed contracts for the supply of anti-tank systems, air defense systems and small arms to the Pakistani side, Chief of the General Staff of the Pakistani Army General Qamar Javed Bajwa said. Patrol ship "Dmitry Rogachev" project 22160 of the Russian Navy, arrived as part of a detachment of ships of the Black Sea Fleet in Karachi (Pakistan) to participate in the international naval exercises AMAN-2021, conducted under the leadership of the Pakistani Navy,

The general made such a statement on the sidelines of the AMAN-2021 international naval exercises, which ended in Pakistan on February 16, 2021. The Russian Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation has not yet commented on this information.

The general called Russia "a good friend of Pakistan," with whom Islamabad, as a partner in the SCO, would like to develop relations not only in the military sphere.

The Chief of the General Staff recalled that in recent years Pakistan has acquired Mi-35 combat helicopters from Russia.
Earlier, Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan reported that the country is interested in acquiring weapons from Russia, and the Pakistani military is already in contact with Russian colleagues on this issue.

https://bmpd.livejournal.com/4258981.html

Russia and Pakistan signed a defense cooperation agreement in November 2014. At the moment, Moscow has supplied the Pakistani side with a batch of Mi-35M attack helicopters. Also in 2017, representatives of the Pakistani authorities announced their interest in buying Russian T-90 tanks, electronic equipment, and air defense systems.

Deputy Director of CAST on military-technical cooperation with Pakistan

February 21st, 21:54

Could we lose the Indian arms market to Pakistan? Why is Pakistan itself interesting to us as a buyer of our weapons systems? Konstantin Makienko, deputy director of the Center for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies (CAST) , one of the authors of the recently published book "Pakistan: Beyond Stereotypes" , told MK about this .


- Russia has been actively selling weapons to India for a long time. Not so long ago, a contract was signed for the supply of our S-400s to Delhi, which the United States tried in every way to prevent. And now we are actually starting to trade with our Indian adversary - Pakistan. Is there a conflict of interest here? If we trade with Pakistan, will we lose India?

- Moscow has always very closely followed the observance of Indian interests. At least as long as Russia remained India's preferred arms procurement partner. That is why, until 2014, Pakistan was completely absent from the list of states with which we have allowed military-technical cooperation.

As for India, it has always been an open country in terms of arms purchases and diversified arms imports. Earlier, back in the days of the USSR, she bought weapons not only from us, but also from France, Germany, Great Britain. But the USSR, and then Russia, was the first of equals. However, since 2008, India has clearly embarked on a course to expand arms purchases from the United States. It is the United States, not Russia, that has now become India's preferred MTC partner. We are very fond of talking about some kind of Russian-Indian "strategic partnership". This is self-deception. India's strategic partner is the United States, while Russia is perceived in India as a weakening and decrepit power, the apogee of its influence in the world remained in the distant past, and its relative power is steadily declining.

Over the past ten to thirteen years, Russia has suffered a series of painful failures in the Indian market. The Indians gave us a ride at several serious arms tenders. Instead of Mi-26 helicopters, they took the American military transport helicopters Chinook. Instead of combat Mi-28Ns, they bought American Apache. In a tender for fighters, the French Rafale won the MiG-35. The French, of course, won against other participants in the tender, but we are interested in the fact that our proposal with the MiG-35 lost.

India also bought American Hercules and C-17 medium military transport aircraft. But in fairness, I will note that in the segment of military transport aviation we had nothing to offer due to the complete degradation of the Ilyushin design bureau, which turned not just into a corpse, but into a mummified corpse.

- The question arises: did the Indians have such a choice exclusively related to politics, or was the technical side of the issue more important? Maybe our weapons were just worse than the American or French?

- It is clear that the American weapons are quite good. The same Apache is a very solid helicopter that took part in many military conflicts. However, the advantages of American weapons, however, as well as any Western ones, become less obvious when you consider their monstrous cost. In addition, the United States never transfers any more or less serious technology even to its closest allies. According to the criterion of efficiency and cost, Russian weapons are still out of competition.

- Plus, probably their expensive after-sales service?

- Very expensive! Their service is insanely expensive. When we are told that Russian after-sales service could be better, then I will say this: if the Indians are willing to pay us the same money for Russian service that they pay to the West, to the same Americans, then our service will also become very good.

As for India's priority purchases of American weapons, political factors still play a predominant role. At this time, since about 2008, the rapprochement between India and the US was actively taking place on an anti-Chinese basis. In general, Delhi and Washington had such a "honeymoon" in their relationship. The Indians then seriously hoped that the United States would offer them, for example, their nuclear submarines. It was very similar to what happened in our country in 1991, when everyone in Russia adored Americans. At that time we did not yet understand that the Americans did not recognize anyone as their equal partners. For them, only vassals exist, not partners.

- Need to understand, the "honeymoon" between the Indians and the Americans is over?

- Ends. Much more pragmatic relations are now developing there. But what is important to understand here? Yes, India is a sovereign country, it has the full legal right to buy weapons wherever it wants. But Russia is also a sovereign country. It also reserves the right to sell weapons to those countries that are ready and want to buy it.

- Does Pakistan want?

- Pakistan not only wants, it is very interested in the purchase of Russian weapons. In general, since the Afghan war, Pakistanis have been imbued with deep respect and somewhere even love for Russian, then Soviet, weapons. They saw and understood that Russian weapons in peacetime, perhaps, do not seem as “comfortable” or convenient as American ones. But during the war, this supposedly flaw is not fundamental. Already others are fundamental, specifically - fighting qualities. Whether you have an air conditioner or not, how many beds are in a cabin or cockpit is not so important anymore.

So, Pakistanis love Russian weapons and deeply respect them, because they felt all the advantages of it, as they say, on their own skin.

- When could they feel it? Are you talking about the Afghan war?

- Yes. They were then perfectly able to assess its effectiveness. Well, not themselves, but their mujahideen clients. And the Pakistanis, what can we hide now, obviously walked along the same paths. In short, they saw there how Soviet weapons worked in combat conditions. That is why they value him very much.

Besides, Pakistan is in a very difficult situation. In the sense that they now have a very limited range of sources for the purchase of weapons - these are China and partly Turkey. China is their strategic partner and ally. But Pakistanis are proud people, and they do not want such a strong one-sided dependence on China. And they have nowhere to diversify, since the Americans and Europeans do not sell weapons to them, and Turkey cannot yet cover Pakistani needs for the entire range of weapons. It turns out that Pakistan remains the only source of diversification - Russia. That is why Russia receives very large preferences on the Pakistani market. By the way, Russia's penetration into the Chinese-controlled Pakistani market will also be a signal to Beijing that their actions to discredit Russian weapons, which they have been actively taking lately, did not go unnoticed and did not remain without consequences. Russians also have something to say to potential buyers about the quality of Chinese crafts.

- What financial preferences does Russia get in Pakistan?

- Not only. There are closed tenders where one single participant is represented - Rosoboronexport.

- What kind of tender is it? Why then such formalities?

- According to the law, they apparently need to hold tenders. So they fulfill the law. Although it is carried out with one single participant. But by the way, Pakistanis know how to conclude such deals. Negotiations, which in other countries sometimes last for many months, or even years, take place in 2-3 months, after which they immediately purchase weapons.

https://bmpd.livejournal.com/4261520.html