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India.com
3 days ago
- Business
- India.com
India arming Armenia with powerful weapons like Pinaka, Akash, and howitzers; check Pakistan, Turkey, Azerbaijan connection
India arming Armenia with powerful weapons like Pinaka, Akash, and howitzers; check Pakistan, Turkey, Azerbaijan connection Defense relations between India and Armenia have been continuously increasing. By Tahir Qureshi Edited by Tahir Qureshi Advertisement New Delhi: India is continuously increasing arms sales to Armenia. This is seen as an effort to counter the growing strategic alliance between Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Pakistan. This trilateral partnership has challenged India's regional interests. During the recent India-Pakistan conflict, Turkey and Azerbaijan openly supported Islamabad and condemned India. In this context, the rising Indian arms sales to Armenia are being viewed as a balance of power, which is likely to escalate tensions with Azerbaijan and Turkey. Azerbaijan has a longstanding hostility with Armenia, and both countries have fought several wars against each other. Defense relations between India and Armenia have been continuously increasing since 2020. The main reason for this is Armenia's growing distance from its traditional arms supplier, Russia. During the 2020 Nagorno-Karabakh war, Armenia accused Russia of remaining neutral and not providing assistance, even though both countries are members of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO). Advertisement === Speaking to the South China Morning Post, Rajan Kochar, senior advisor at the Delhi-based security think tank Indic Researchers Forum, stated, 'India's relations with Turkey and Azerbaijan are not very good. Therefore, the sale of any kind of weapons to Armenia is unlikely to affect our relations with them, especially since both countries openly supported and promoted Pakistan against India during Operation Sindoor.' According to media reports, India is planning to deliver a second consignment of the Akash-1S surface-to-air missile system to Armenia under the 2022 treaty, along with a wide range of weapons including howitzer guns and the Pinaka multiple launch rocket system. The first consignment of missiles was sent last November. Advertisement === According to a report, Russia was Armenia's largest arms supplier for many years, but experts say that Yerevan's not providing open support for Moscow in the war against Ukraine has negatively impacted the relationship. Since then, India has emerged as a major supplier of arms to Armenia. London-based independent political analyst Chris Blackburn stated that India's missile sales are a direct response to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's support for Pakistan and his criticism of countries supplying arms to Armenia.
South China Morning Post
21-05-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Why India is boosting arms sales to Armenia amid Pakistan, Turkey tensions
India is reportedly accelerating arms sales to Armenia in what analysts view as part of a broader effort to counter the growing strategic alignment between Turkey Azerbaijan and Pakistan – a trilateral partnership that has challenged New Delhi's regional interests and openly backed Islamabad in the wake of their recent cross-border flare-up. Defence ties between Delhi and Armenia's government in Yerevan have grown steadily since 2020, fuelled by shared strategic interests and the West Asian nation's gradual pivot away from Russia , its traditional arms supplier. Indian analysts say the shift highlights a deeper geopolitical rivalry emerging across Eurasia, where alliances are increasingly being redrawn in the wake of the Ukraine war and other regional conflicts. 'India's relations with Turkey and Azerbaijan are not great,' said Rajan Kochar, a senior adviser at Indic Researchers Forum, a Delhi-based security think tank. 'Therefore, any arms sales to Armenia are unlikely to affect our relations with them, especially so when both nations have openly sided and abetted Pakistan against India in the recent Operation Sindoor.' An Armenian soldier fires artillery on the front line amid fighting between Armenian and Azerbaijani forces over the breakaway region of Nagorno-Karabakh in 2020. Photo: AFP India is planning to deliver a second batch of Akash-1S surface-to-air missile systems to Armenia under a 2022 treaty, along with a broader range of weapons including howitzer guns and Pinaka multiple launch rocket systems, according to media reports. The first batch of missiles was sent in November last year.
