NEW DELHI, Dec 1: Russia will not sell any arms to Pakistan if India honoured Moscow's interests in mutual defence cooperation, Press Trust of India said on Wednesday quoting a Russian official in Moscow.

"If India will not fully honour our interests, then there is no need to attach strings, conditions and demands from Russia not to trade (in arms) with Pakistan," an unnamed defence ministry source was quoted as saying by the state-run RIA Novosti agency ahead of Russian President Putin's India visit beginning on Friday.

Pointing that currently at the request of India, Moscow is not co-operating with Islamabad in defence sector, the unnamed official said that in case India does not keep in view Russia's interests, the military ties with Pakistan can be resumed.

So far Russia has supplied Mi-17 dual-purpose helicopters to Pakistan, PTI said. The news agency quoted Russian Defence Minister Sergei Ivanov as saying in Moscow on Tuesday that defence ties with India could come to a halt if India sought to mix its technologies with proposed purchases from the United States.

Russia, which was India's largest arms supplier, mostly on generous credit, now wants the Rupee-Rouble issue to be resolved in a mutually beneficial manner and the pending Rupees worth three billion dollars re-invested on concrete projects either on Indian soil or in Russia. Moscow is keen that India extend its support to Russia joining the WTO. A document in this regard may be signed during Mr Putin's three-day visit.

Opinion

Editorial

Rampant lawlessness
Updated 25 Jul, 2026

Rampant lawlessness

THE brutal slaying of a judge and his guard in Mastung is the latest in a series of blood-drenched events that have...
Daily fuel pricing
25 Jul, 2026

Daily fuel pricing

THE government’s move to daily petroleum price adjustments should make fuel pricing more transparent and more...
The drug problem
25 Jul, 2026

The drug problem

WHILE Islamabad Police chase low-level peddlers, the capital’s kingpins have quietly taken their operations ...
A new chokepoint
Updated 24 Jul, 2026

A new chokepoint

WITH free transit of vessels through the Strait of Hormuz blocked due to the US-Iran conflict, a new chokepoint has...
Improved rating
24 Jul, 2026

Improved rating

S&P GLOBAL’S decision to upgrade Pakistan’s long-term sovereign credit rating to ‘B’ with a stable...
More firetraps
24 Jul, 2026

More firetraps

WHILE it was already apparent that death traps dot Karachi, a safety audit by the Sindh government has thrown up...