Russia and India recently agreed to jointly manufacture a military transport plane. In an e-mail interview, Seema Desai, a London-based analyst in Eurasia Group's Asia practice, discusses India-Russia defense relations.
WPR: Historically, what kind of defense relationship have India and Russia shared?
Seema Desai: India and Russia have traditionally shared a very strong defense relationship, with past purchases including fighter aircraft, missiles, submarines, and aircraft carriers, in addition to other equipment such as radars and tanks. Although India still buys the bulk of its military hardware from Russia (around 60 percent), Russia is a less-dominant player than it has been in years past as vendors from other countries -- for instance, the United States -- enter the growing Indian market.