In recent years, the United States has strengthened its ties with India to counter China's growing influence in the region. As part of that effort, the United States recently staged a display of her F-35 and bomber in India to discourage the country from its longstanding defense partnership with Russia.
The exhibit was part of the Aero India 2023 Airshow held in February in the southern city of Bengaluru. The US unveiled the F-35 stealth fighter along with the B-1B Lancer and his KC-135 Stratotanker. The F-35 is one of the world's most advanced fighter aircraft and is currently in service with the United States Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps. The B-1B Lancer is a long-range strategic bomber and the KC-135 is a tanker.
The exhibition was seen as a message to India, which has traditionally relied on Russia for its defense needs. India is the world's second largest arms importer and has a long history of defense cooperation with Russia. In recent years, however, India has sought to diversify its sources of military equipment and has shown interest in purchasing US-made weapons.
The United States has sought to capitalize on this change by providing India with advanced military hardware and technology. In 2019, the United States approved the sale of 24 MH-60R Seahawk helicopters to India for $2.6 billion. The United States has also pressured India to purchase Patriot missile defense systems and other advanced weapons.
The U.S.-India defense partnership is seen as a key element of the U.S. strategy to counter Chinese influence in the region. India and China have had a longstanding border dispute and tensions between the two countries have escalated in recent years. The United States is looking to build a coalition of nations to counter China's rise, and India is seen as a key player in that effort. However, India's relationship with Russia remains an important factor in India's defense policy. Russia remains India's largest supplier of military hardware, and the two countries have a decades-long strategic partnership. India has also collaborated with Russia on a number of joint military projects, including the development of a fifth generation fighter.
It remains to be seen how India will balance competing defense interests while trying to modernize its military and maintain its strategic independence. The display of her F-35s and bombers in India underscores U.S. intentions to deepen its defense ties with India and challenge Russia's longstanding role as India's primary defense partner. However, given the complexity of the regional and global geopolitical situation, it is unclear whether India is ready to fully accept the United States as its new defense partner.