ARE INDIAN AMMUNITION BEING USED BY UKRAINE AGAINST RUSSIA? MEA'S STRONGLY WORDED CLARIFICATION

New Delhi: Reacting sharply to a report that artillery shells sold by India to European customers were being "diverted" to Ukraine to support its defence against Russia, the Ministry of External Affairs said "Reuters report is speculative and misleading. It implies violations by India, where none exist and, hence, is inaccurate and mischievous."

"India has an impeccable track record of compliance with international obligations on the export of military and dual use items. India has been carrying out its defence exports taking into account its international obligations on non-proliferation and based on its own robust legal and regulatory framework, which includes a holistic assessment of relevant criteria, including end user obligations and certifications," the MEA said in a statement.

News agency Reuters, in its report, had also claimed that New Delhi has not intervened to stop the trade despite protests from Moscow, it said.

The transfer of munitions to Ukraine has been taking place for more than a year, news agency Reuters reported quoting sources and the customs data. Indian arms export regulations limit the use of weaponry to the declared purchaser, who risks future sales being terminated if unauthorised transfers occur.

The Kremlin has, on at least two occasions, taken up the matter with New Delhi, it said. The matter was also raised during a July meeting between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and his Indian counterpart, three Indian officials said.

In January, Foreign ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told a news conference that India had not sent or sold artillery shells to Ukraine.

According to the report, the amount of the Indian ammunition used by Ukraine was under 1% of the total arms imported by Kyiv since the war. The news agency couldn't determine if the munitions were resold or donated to Kyiv by the European customers.

The European countries sending Indian munitions to Ukraine include Italy and the Czech Republic, which is leading an initiative to supply Kyiv with artillery shells from outside the European Union. The Ukrainian, Italian, Spanish and Czech defence ministries did not respond to requests for comment, according to the Reuters.

India and the US, Ukraine's main security backer, recently strengthened defence and diplomatic partnership against the backdrop of a rising China. New Delhi also has warm ties with Russia, which supplies more than 60% of Delhi's arms import

India has also maintained a neutral stand on the Russia-Ukrain war, calling both the countries to cease war and hold peaceful talks. India, which has long been the world's largest weapons importer, has lately been trying to develop its nascent arms export sector.

Delhi exported just over $3 billion of arms between 2018 and 2023and its defence exports surpassed $2.5 billion in the last fiscal year. The Defence Ministry has not set a target to about $6 billion by 2029.

2024-09-19T15:47:15Z dg43tfdfdgfd