MOSCOW: Russia has assured India that it will not sell arms to Pakistan, outgoing Indian Ambassador to Moscow Alfred Gonsalves said here on Oct.2. Russia has also agreed to finance India for the purchase of military hardware.
Gonsalves said that, in the wake of recent high-level consultations between Russia and Pakistan during which prospects of arms supplies to Islamabad were Explored, he had informed Moscow that India would take a div view” of any arms supply to Pakistan.
He added, “Pakistan has understood it will be a waste of time to shop for Russian arms. It has been told that Russia has its priorities, President Yeltsin is to visit India and a political treaty between India and Russia is in the offing.”
In another significant development, Gonsalves was informed during his talks with the Russians of the strong support given by the Russian Parliament for the sale of cryogenic engines to India, He was told that the Russian Government was “100% behind it” Gonsalves was India’s last ambassador to the Soviet Union and first to Russia. At his final briefing for the Indian press, he said Russia and India had agreed on long-term strategic cooperation, which would be based not only on defence cooperation but also on factors ensuring the stability of Central and West Asia and checking Islamic fundamentalism.
He said relations between India and Russia were already better in the first nine months of this year than in the last Two years of the Soviet Union.
He had visited India in May during the controversy of Russia’s sale of cryogenic engines to New Delhi.
Both sides are working on a set of four treaties which, it is hoped, will be ready for signature in January when President Yeltsin visits India for the first Indo Russian summit.
These include a political treaty, a military co-operation pact as well.as proposals for information exchanges and close bilateral contacts at all governmental levels.
Article extracted from this publication >> October 16, 1992
