Philippines May Become First Buyer of Russian-Indian BrahMos Missiles
The first export contract for the Russian-Indian supersonic long-range cruise missile BrahMos to a third country can be signed this spring, said BrahMos Chief General Manager Praveen Pathak.
BrahMos is the most successful Russian-Indian technical-military cooperation project, Russian military expert Vasily Kashin told Sputnik. BrahMos is currently conducting active marketing for strong anti-ship missiles in Southeast Asia and the Middle East, in a total of 14 countries.
India, aided by Russia, has launched a family of supersonic cruise missiles to engage land and sea targets at a speed of 2.8 million. The basic version for the Navy is based on the Russian Onyx supersonic anti-ship missile design. Missile variants have been made for ground forces and the Air Force with a wide range based on Russian anti-ship missiles. At present, India, with Russian assistance, has set up such missile production, which produces several dozen per year.
India has long wanted to switch to the export of BrahMos missiles, which will be an important step in a long journey to transform the country from a major arms importer to an important military-industrial center. Southeast Asia and the Middle East are regions that play a priority role in Indian foreign policy and foreign economic relations. India has a significant influence in this region, which is why they were chosen as the main direction to promote this missile.
There has been talk of the possibility of supplying BrahMos missiles to Vietnam for some time, but the country has bought the Russian Bastion coastal missile system with an export version of the Onyx missile. According to the latest report, the Philippines might be the first country to buy a BrahMos missile. In December 2019, Philippine National Defense Minister Delfin Lorenzana said the country was interested in buying two BrahMos missile batteries and suggested that contracts could be signed in the first half of 2020.
The purchase of strong anti-ship missiles by the Philippines is a logical step. An island nation with a population of more than 100 million requires the means to control the main territories adjacent to it. The normalization of Sino-Filipino relations under President Rodrigo Duterte does not negate this requirement. Two batteries will not change the power balance in the region, but the ability of the Philippines to defend itself without switching to the US and its allies remains more important for the region. A deal that involves a substantial, though indirect, Russian involvement is likely to make the United States unhappy.
The increase in India-Philippines cooperation came after Narendra Modi served as Indian prime minister. In November 2017, Modi became the first Indian PM to visit the Philippines. Philippine foreign policy is built on a reasonable balance between the US and China, and no other country can match the influence of these countries on the Philippine economy and politics. However, as the Philippines moves towards multi-vector policy, it is understandable if the Philippines seeks close cooperation with as many partners as possible.
Potential purchases of Russian-Indian missile Filipinos show that other large and important countries are slowly but surely changing from US junior allies to independent political players, and this plays an important role in the interests of Russia and China.
source:Sputnik
#Philippines #Russia #Indian
