The interest in India’s BrahMos missile has piqued since it razed Pakistan’s military infrastructure with almost absolute nonchalance during the recent India-Pakistan conflict.
BrahMos missile: India’s ‘Brahmastra’, the BrahMos missile, showcased its destructive power during the recent India-Pakistan military clash. demolishing terrorist hideouts and Pakistani military infrastructure, including key airbases, deep inside the enemy nation. India fired 15 BrahMos missiles on Pakistan during Operation Sindoor, which struck as many as 11 Pakistan Air Force bases, causing widespread destruction.
Demand surges for BrahMos missile after destroying Pak military sites
After its destructive showing, queries have reportedly started pouring in from multiple nations who wish to acquire this deadly supersonic Indian missile.
In 2022, Philippines became the first country to acquire the BrahMos missile from India after it signed a $374 million deal Brahmos Aerospace Private Limited. The second consignment of BrahMos missiles was delivered to Philippines in April this year, after which Vietnam also inked a deal with New Delhi to purchase the lethal supersonic missile for its army and naval forces.
However, the interest in BrahMos missiles has piqued since it razed Pakistan’s military infrastructure with almost absolute nonchalance during the recent India-Pakistan conflict, with several countries including– Thailand, Singapore, Brunei, Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Venezuela– and Muslim nations like Egypt, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Oman, expressing interest in purchasing the BrahMos missile system from India.
Indonesia is also on the verge of finalizing a deal with India to acquire BrahMos supersonic missiles.
Why India can’t sell BrahMos missiles to any country it wants?
However, notwithstanding the increased interest in BrahMos missiles, India cannot unilaterally sell this advanced missile platform to every nation it wants to.
This is due to the fact that BrahMos is a joint venture between India and Russia, under which, BrahMos Aerospace, the manufacturer of BrahMos missiles, was established in India in February 1998, as a joint collaboration between India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), and Russia’s Military Industrial Consortium NPO Mashinostroyenia through an Inter- Governmental Agreement, according to official records.
Thus, India and Russia have an equal, 50-50 stake in BrahMos missile technology, which means that Russia must consent to any sale of the missile platform to a third country if India wishes to sell it.
