New Delhi, Sep 4: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said on Tuesday Russia and India should take advantage of the low cost of production in India in order to produce armed equipment under joint venture framework for the third nations at very low costs.
In an interview with TASS news agency, Modi said, “Today, provided that technologies are transferred, the production of military equipment can be cheap in India. And we will be able to supply these weapons to third nations at very low prices. India and Russia need to take advantage of this opportunity.”
Modi also said Indo-Russian collaboration has renewed to next level beyond the planned framework of technical and military cooperation, as manifested by Moscow’s assistance to train Indian astronauts for the Gaganyaan project, according to ANI news reports.
He said, “Information technologies are developing well in India and we are making success in the space sphere. Now, as we are cultivating the Gaganyaan project (Sky Vehicle – India’s first manned spacecraft), Russia will help us train our astronauts. This cooperation is not limited to just military and technical and related fields.”
The Indian prime minister also expressed hope his bilateral meeting with the Russian president, Vladimir Putin, at the Eastern Economic Forum (EEF) will offer a fresh impetus to bilateral and diplomatic relations between two allies.
Modi said, “I am confident that this visit will give a new vector, new energy and a new impetus to the relations between our countries.”
Russia and India are expected to ink numerous arrangements in the sectors of industrial cooperation, trade, defence, energy, investment and connectivity corridors on the sidelines of the 20th Annual Summit between the two nations.