From Russia with love and might: India Buys Nuclear-Powered Submarine from Putin-land!

It may not give the likes of Einstein’s among us a complex of any kind to state something that is so stupidly understood.

That India has been, as seen over the course of the last few decades, among the biggest importers of weaponry is no breaking news of any sort. To that end, anything of fundamental and specific importance with regards to the sphere of defence, should not in the least surprise the regular newspaper reader or app-follower in any way.

Right?

Just like it was during the Kargil war that India acquired the massively impressive Barrack missiles from Israel, over the course of the past so many years, there have been quite a few potent additions to India’s overall defence armory.

And it isn’t just the United States or Israel that India seeks its defense apparatus from. ‘Motherland’ Russia, as it is often referred to also features among the list of a few countries that supply India with armaments or items vital for the country’s defense preparedness or those concerning the realm of security.

Having said the above, one needn’t even explore the integral and vibrant bond that the political supremos of the two nations, Mr. Narendra Modi (India) and Mr. Vladimir Putin (Russia) share. 

India and Russia’s ties go a long way back in time with there being extensive co-operation between the land of Rabindranath Tagore and Leo Tolstoy, respectively, in the sphere of space exploration and research.

Interesting it is to then think of Tolstoy’s seminal work on the ravages of war; War and Peace, something that springs to mind with regards to India having acquired something truly iconic from the former Iron Curtain.

Just a few hours ago, the world’s largest democracy, India, finalized a deal with Russia pertaining to the purchase of a nuclear-powered attack submarine. Now that’s a first of its kind purchase from the land of the legendary KGB, right?

India and Russia have inked a $3 billion deal, with regards to the purchase of the said nuclear submarine- christened Chakra III- in a move that may surely give analysts and experts in this sphere a lot to talk about.

The Chakra-III, according to a report published in the revered Sputnik International- is slated to give India an edge over its rivals in the Indian Ocean region.

Sputnik International further reported on the mega defence acquisition and shared the following:

“The agreement was signed in New Delhi and the submarine could be delivered to the Indian Navy by 2025, according to a person familiar with the development.

In 1988, the Indian Navy leased for three years a nuclear-powered cruise missile submarine that was christened INS Chakra. In 2012, it took on lease for 10 years, a second submarine christened Chakra II, which currently serves with the Eastern Naval Command. India and Russia are discussing extending the lease of this submarine to 2027.”