Walter Ladwig, a senior international-relations lecturer at King’s College London, called the missile sale a “very interesting development” given India’s traditional lack of a strong relationship with the Philippines.
India’s defence exports hit a record 210.8 billion rupees (US$2.5 billion) last financial year, up more than 32 per cent from 2022-23, with the Philippines’ BrahMos missiles accounting for the largest slice of the export pie. Delhi wants to export 350 billion rupees worth of arms and weaponry this financial year.
Ladwig characterised the arms deal with Manila as a continuation of Delhi’s existing policies, in some respects.
“India has provided assistance and training to Vietnam to help develop their fighter capabilities and repeatedly offered to assist with their Kilo submarine programme, all of which would be key assets for defending disputed territory from Chinese encroachment,” he said.
BrahMos cruise missiles are manufactured by Indo-Russian multinational defence company BrahMos Aerospace and can travel at a speed of 2.8 Mach – almost triple the speed of sound.
For the Philippines, acquiring the missiles is viewed as a significant step in deterring China’s increasing military presence and activities in the South China Sea.
“If India sells weapon systems to countries to help them defend from Chinese aggression, [and it] affects the bilateral relationship with China, that is on Beijing,” Ladwig said.
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Why is the Philippines aligning itself with the US after years of close China ties under Duterte
Why is the Philippines aligning itself with the US after years of close China ties under Duterte
Premesha Saha, a fellow with the Delhi-based Observer Research Foundation think tank’s strategic studies programme, said India’s sale of BrahMos to the Philippines was a step towards the South Asian nation emerging as a strategic and security player for Southeast Asia, and by extension the Indo-Pacific.
Saha said India would need to enter into similar weapons deals with other countries such as Indonesia and Vietnam in future to truly be seen as a credible strategic player in the region.
“This region [Southeast Asia] is pivotal for India in terms of its ambitions in the Indo- Pacific and also to be seen as a leading voice in the Global South,” said Saha, whose research focuses on Southeast Asia, East Asia, Oceania and the emerging dynamics of the Indo-Pacific region.
Under its “Act East” policy, India has been strengthening military ties with Asean member states through combat exercises, exchanges, training programmes, and increased weapon supplies.
Supplying its finest BrahMos missiles to friendly countries like the Philippines is natural [for India] … in the context of evolving security dynamics in the Indo -Pacific
Saha said the sale of BrahMos missile to the Philippines “has to be seen beyond the fact of just containing China. The aim is for India to start taking steps to be seen as a credible security and strategic partner in Southeast Asia,” she said.
“Supplying its finest BrahMos missiles to friendly countries like the Philippines is natural in that sense and in the context of evolving security dynamics in the Indo-Pacific as perceived by Manila,” he said, calling “Made-in-India for the world” and reaching a target of US$5 billion in defence exports Delhi’s “mantra”.
Trigunayat said that while China’s feathers might get ruffled, there was little India could do except pursue its own national interests.
Will China hold back during the US-Philippine Balikatan military drills?
Will China hold back during the US-Philippine Balikatan military drills?
“China and the Philippines have their own problem-and-sovereignty matrix which has forced Manila to beef up its defences, including its security partnership with the US,” said Trigunayat, who is also a fellow with the Vivekananda International Foundation think tank. “Unfortunately China’s hegemonic actions in the region continue to [disturb] its neighbours more often than not.”
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the delivery of the BrahMos missiles on Friday at an election rally in Damoh, Madhya Pradesh, where he congratulated the people of India for the achievement.
India-China relations are currently at a very low ebb, Trigunayat said, “[but] Modi recently reiterated that the relationship with China is important and significant, and the two sides need to urgently address the prolonged situation on our borders so that the abnormality of our relations can be put behind us.”