Eyeing Modernisation, India Purchased Defence Equipment Worth $34 Billion Between 2008 And 2015

India emerged as the second largest purchaser of arms among developing nations between 2008 and 2015, only behind Saudi Arabia, a recent report prepared by Congressional Research Service (CRS) has revealed. CRS is an independent bipartisan research wing of the US Congress.

While India purchased modern weapons worth $34 billion, Saudi Arabia’s spent around $93.5 billion to modernise its armed forces.

According to the report, India has diversified its weapons supplier base. While it remains the principal user of Russian weapons, it has sought to buy more from western countries.

“This pattern of Indian arms purchases indicates that Russia will likely face strong new competition from other major weapons suppliers for the India arms market, and it can no longer be assured that India will consistently purchase its major combat systems,” CRS said. As India’s reliance on Russian weapons has reduced, Moscow is looking for other markets, the report concludes.