NEW DELHI: External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said that India has a sizable stockpile of weaponry of Russian provenance since "Western powers support the military rule in the neighbourhood." In Canberra, he made this statement during a news conference alongside his Australian counterpart Penny Wong.

In rely to a query from an Australian journalist who asked him whether India will lessen its reliance on Russian armaments and rethink its relations with Russia in light of the Ukraine war, Jaishankar, who is now visiting Australia, stated this.

"We have a sizable stockpile of weaponry with Soviet and Russian origins. And for a number of reasons, that inventory increased. In addition to the advantages of the weapons systems themselves, Western nations for many years refused to give India any weapons and instead preferred a military dictatorship to be our neighbour instead"Jaishankar said.

In the 1980s, Pakistan was ruled by military rulers, and he was making reference to the Cold War era when the US chose to equip Pakistan with weaponry.

The External Affairs Minister added that the long-standing partnership between India and Russia has undoubtedly benefited New Delhi's interests.

"In international politics, we all deal with what we have and make decisions that take into account both our present circumstances and our long-term objectives. I believe there are lessons to be learned from this current conflict, just like there are from any military conflict, and I know my extremely qualified military colleagues will be carefully analysing it "Jaishankar said.

In a joint news conference with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken last month, Jaishankar also stated that India has the freedom to choose the weaponry it wants to buy based on what safeguards its national interests.

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