India Isn't Buying As Much Weapons From Russia As It Did Before. Here's Why

India's weapons imports from Russia has dropped 19 per cent in the five year period from 2018-2022, reported Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

SIPRI, based at Stockholm Sweden, is an independent think-tank that studies conflict, weapons sales, and disarmament.

The SIPRI report says that, Russia is India’s largest weapons supplier, but the value of its weapons imports fell from 64 per cent in the 2013-17 period to 45 per cent in the 2018-2022 period.

India is the world’s largest importer of weapons since 1993.

The drop in imports from Russia, the SIPRI report says, is due to sanctions on Russia for the Russia-Ukraine war, the Indian Government's focus on Make-in-India, and increased competition from France.

Just Yesterday (13 March), the Indian Government released a report in Parliament which says that the spending on the weapons import fell 10 per cent, from 46 per cent in 2018-19 to 36.7 per cent in 2022 due to increased focus on indigenous weapons manufacturing.

The report also says that France has become India’s second-largest weapons supplier in the 2018-22 period, replacing the United States with an increase of 489 per cent, primarily due to the import of thirty-six (36) Dassault Rafale fighter jets for the IAF.