By RIA Novosti
Moscow : Commandos from the Indian Army’s 50 Parachute Brigade are to join Russian forces in joint counter-terrorism exercises in the northern part of the country later this month.
The exercises, code-named Indra-2007, will be held Sep 11-20 at the training centre of the 76th Guards Air Assault Division at Pskov. Other commando units would also be involved in the exercise, the Russian Airborne Force’s press service said.
The Indian commandos will spend the first few days training at an assault course, practicing parachute jumps and firing Russian weapons. Four Russian-Indian units will then be formed and locate and destroy “terrorist” bases after a three-day, 100-km forced march.
Lt. Gen. Nikolai Ignatov, Deputy Commander of the Russian Airborne Force, will supervise the active part of the exercise. The Indian Army chief, Gen. J.J. Singh, is also likely to witness the war game.
During the visit, Singh is also likely to hold talks with Russian officials on time and cost overruns in big-ticket deals involving the refurbishment of the aircraft carrier Admiral Gorshkov the Indian Navy has purchased, and a follow-up order for 40 Sukhoi-SU-30MKI jets for the Indian Air Force.
Singh’s visit comes on the heels of that by Indian National Security Advisor M.K. Narayanan last month to discuss the same issue, as also security-related issues.
Indian Defence Minister A.K. Antony is due in Moscow next month when the price issue is likely to figure high on the agenda. Should it still not be resolved, it would be left to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Russian President Vladimir Putin to untangle the knots during their annual summit here later this year.
The naval component of Indra-2007 was conducted in the Pacific Ocean in April and involved ships of the Indian Navy and the Russian Pacific Fleet.
India had hosted the previous Indra-2005 joint exercise.