Business with the Bear

The Cold War is long gone, as is Soviet-Communist Russia. Russia, under President Vladimir Putin, has an outwards urge and is revisiting relationships that are in need of overhaul in the 21^st century. Its relationship with Pakistan is inevitably one such. Russia has had business in this part of the world since Partition, not all of it profitable. The past Afghan experience will be in some Russian minds, but it is a fast-moving present that is driving events, such as the signing of an agreement to increase defence and military cooperation between the two countries in Islamabad on November 20. The occasion was the first visit by any Russian defence minister to Pakistan.

Although the details of the agreement have not been made public, it is known that Pakistan has an interest in acquiring Russian combat helicopters — specifically the MiL Mi35 Hind in its late variants. The Hind E is an iconic and effective ground-attack vehicle and would represent a significant upgrade for our armed forces. Russia and Pakistan are not new to military collaboration. The JF-17 ‘Thunder’ fighter, which is co-produced by the Pakistan Air Force and China’s Chengdu Aviation Corporation, is powered by the Russian-manufactured RD-93 engine.

Although officials were circumspect in their comments about the agreement, a military source said that this was “a milestone in burying a bitter past”. Geopolitics is on, what amounts to fast-forwards, as the post-2014 scenario unfolds in Afghanistan and across the subcontinent. Russian interests in Pakistan are broad, ranging from counter-terrorism to the international drugs trade as evidenced by recent joint naval exercises in the Indian Ocean. In making the agreement, the Russians will have been mindful of the reaction of India, which is the second-largest market for the Russian defence industry. President Putin and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi have already met and Russia and India have set a bilateral trade target of $20 billion by 2015. Russo-Pak trade currently stands at $542 million and is far below its potential. Doing business with The Bear makes sense at many levels, not only military, and we welcome this agreement.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 22^nd, 2014.

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