Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh said India has no defence budget issues and will raise delivery delays of the S-400 air defence system and other projects with Russia during President Vladimir Putin’s upcoming visit to New Delhi.
No Challenges in Defence Expenditure
Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh on Friday said that India faces no challenges regarding defence expenditure, asserting that the country has adequate resources and would receive additional support from the Finance Ministry if required. Speaking at ANI’s National Security Summit in New Delhi, he said, “… There are no challenges, we have enough resources, and I am sure that the Finance Ministry can provide us with additional support if required…”
India to Address S-400 Delays with Russia
The Defence Secretary also confirmed that the Indian government will raise broader defence cooperation issues and seek clear answers from Russia on delays in the delivery of S-400 air defence systems during Russian President Vladimir Putin’s upcoming visit to India in early December. He said the visit will focus on expanding defence ties between the two nations.
Singh stated, “Don’t expect any announcements regarding S-400 during this. This meeting will focus on the broader aspects of defence cooperation between the two sides. We’ll try to ensure that some of these delivery delays are ended, and we start getting clearer answers in terms of when some of these Delayed deliveries take place.”
Focus on Delays, Not New Procurements
He clarified that no specific procurement decisions would be discussed publicly, as these require formal cabinet approval. “I don’t want to talk about specific procurement decisions. That is, in a sense, giving advanced warning of what has to be decided in cabinet. So I’m not going to talk about specific platforms, but we have an extensive defence program with them, including the existing S-400 contracts, which are delayed. But they’ve now promised to deliver the balance to batteries in the coming Financial year,” he said.
Singh added that India will also take up delays in other major defence projects with the Russian side during Putin’s visit and push for expedited progress. “A bunch of other programs which are there are delivering milestone delays, which will be taken up with them. And try to sort of expedite. Those including the uh and the major programs such as the Sukhoi upgradation,” he noted.
Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to visit India in early December to attend the Russia-India Summit. (ANI)
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