The Indian authorities have decided to abandon the purchase of Russian Ka-31 helicopters.

India, which had previously intended to buy Russian Ka-31 helicopters, unexpectedly refused to buy these rotorcraft. According to preliminary data, the reason for everything was the lack of agreement on payment for Russian helicopters, since foreign sanctions were imposed against Russia.

It is known that India intended to order 10 Russian Ka-31 helicopters for a total amount of about $520 million to equip the air wing of the new Indian aircraft carrier INS Vikrant. However, despite the existing need, India unexpectedly stopped further negotiations on this matter.

Experts believe that in reality, the reason lies not in the difficulties of mutual settlements due to the imposed sanctions, but in the fact that India could have been pressured by the United States.

“The probability that Russia and India have not agreed on a deal for $520 million is very low, especially since the two countries have previously reached agreements on mutual settlements without reference to foreign currencies. It is obvious that the United States seriously put pressure on India, forcing, if not completely abandoning the purchase of Russian helicopters in the AWACS version, then at least freezing the deal., - the expert marks.

So far, there are no official comments on this subject from Russia.