Russian, Indian defense ministers meet in Moscow

The defense sector is one of the leading areas of cooperation between Russia and India, Russian defense minister said on Wednesday.

"Russia and India are bound by reliable, solid, friendly relations. This is especially true when it comes to cooperation in the military and military-technical spheres," Sergey Shoygu said at a meeting with his Indian counterpart Rajnath Singh in the capital Moscow.

According to the minister, the two countries strengthen military cooperation by expanding communications between the general staffs and the armed forces, joint military exercises, educational exchanges. He also mentioned Russian-Indian interactions within the framework of the international organizations, including in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO).

For his part, Rajnath Singh said that India restructured its part of the joint commission aiming to expand the military cooperation with Russia, and added that he was going to work with his Russian counterpart "in a spirit of mutual confidence and particularly privileged partnership".

India is the biggest buyer of the Russian arms. The Indian Armed Forces use Russian Su and MiG fighter jets, helicopters and tanks. In 2018, the two countries signed $6 billion contract for the S-400 air defense systems and $500 million contract for two combat frigates delivery.

Moscow and Delhi also work on localization of Russian arms production in India.