Reuters: Ammunition from India arrives in Ukraine despite Russian protests

European countries have been supplying Ukraine with artillery shells from Indian arms manufacturers for more than a year. Despite Russiaʼs protests, India does not interfere or stop trade.

This was reported by Reuters with reference to 11 Indian and European government and defense industry officials, as well as customs data.

Indiaʼs export rules stipulate that only the declared buyer can use the weapons — otherwise the country can stop further arms sales. At the same time, as two Indian officials interviewed by the agency said, India has not taken any action to limit supplies to Europe.

Moscow discussed these supplies with New Delhi at least twice, but was unsuccessful. In particular, it was discussed at a meeting between the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia Sergei Lavrov and his Indian counterpart. However, this did not prevent the Kremlin from presenting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modiʼs July trip to Russia as a visit by a friend of Vladimir Putin.

Sources told Reuters that India produces only a small amount of the ammunition used by Ukraine. According to one Indian official, this is less than 1% of the total number of weapons imported by Kyiv since the start of the full-scale Russian invasion.

Indian ammunition is sent to Ukraine by Italy and the Czech Republic, which is leading the initiative to supply Kyiv with artillery shells from outside the European Union. Indian manufacturers also exported ammunition components to Spain and Slovenia — they have already established supply chains for Ukraine.

According to customs data, 155 mm, 120 mm and 125 mm caliber ammunition can be supplied to Ukraine.

These deliveries enable India to develop its nascent arms export sector (previously India only imported arms). In addition, it allows India to show its partners in the West that it is not on Russiaʼs side in the Russian-Ukrainian war, Reuters notes.

• India has been buying Russian weapons and energy resources for a long time. However, after Western sanctions against Russia, India stopped receiving weapons from the Russian Federation, as countries are looking for a payment method that does not violate restrictions. Instead, in 2022, New Delhi imported ten times more Russian oil than the year before, refusing to join the sanctions against Russia. India also abstained from UN resolutions calling for the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine and condemning the invasion of the Russian Federation.