Azerbaijani media sources have claimed that India is supplying indigenously made military equipment to Armenia via Iran.
The report published by the website Caliber.az was accompanied by videos showing several camouflaged military trucks, allegedly belonging to India, moving through the Nordoz border checkpoint between Iran and Armenia.
India Supplying Arms to Armenia
Reports claimed that the videos showed the transportation of the first consignment of India’s first indigenously designed and developed Multi-Barrel Rocket Launcher System (MBRLS) Pinaka to Armenia via Iran.
The Azerbaijani website said, “The sender of weapons is India, one of the countries that has been increasingly involved in military-technical cooperation with Armenia.”
According to the reports, the cargo was sent by India to Iran through the Bandar Abbas port.
The website claimed that India’s alleged delivery of arms resulted from recent meetings between the two countries. It called India out for its “policy of inciting military conflict” despite being a part of the Non-Aligned Movement.
We received a video showing a military cargo crossing a border checkpoint in #Iran to the territory of #Armenia. It was reportedly delivered to the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas from a country out of the region. And guess who? #India.
— Caliber English (@CaliberEnglish) July 26, 2023
A simple correlation of logic & facts can… pic.twitter.com/9203fK28gM
The reports criticised India for using Iran to send supplies at a time when both Armenia and Azerbaijan are negotiating peace.
“The supply of ammunition and lethal weapons to Armenia, including the high-precision Pinaka MLRS and long-range guns, is a direct threat to peaceful Azerbaijani cities, even those located far from the border,” the reports mentioned.
Azerbaijan Expresses Concern
The website claimed that New Delhi had taken the step despite repeated warnings from Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev, who called India’s supply of weapons to Armenia an “unfriendly move” in January.
Aliyev remarked, “We see and know which countries are preparing to give weapons to Armenia. Unfortunately, India is now among them.”
Amidst these reports, Hikmet Hajiyev, Assistant to the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan, met the Indian Ambassador to Azerbaijan, Sridharan Madhusudhanan, and highlighted Baku’s concerns about expanding military cooperation between New Delhi and Yerevan.
The Indian ambassador said that the issue raised by the Azerbaijani side would be conveyed accordingly, and noted the importance of holding a dialogue between the two countries to discuss the problematic issues in bilateral relations.
India-Armenia Defence Cooperation
India and Armenia have conducted several high-level meetings between their officials in the past few months.
In February, the Armenian Deputy Defence Minister Karen Brutyan held talks with Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on the sidelines of the AeroIndia show in Bengaluru.
Azerbaijani sources claim Indian-made military equipment was transferred to Armenia through Iran.
— Clash Report (@clashreport) July 26, 2023
The cargo was delivered to the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas.
Armenia and India have signed military contracts worth over $400 million over the recent months. pic.twitter.com/VHfVNmzcdd
In March, the Armenian Chief of General Staff of Armed Forces, Eduard Asryan, visited India and met the Indian Chief of Defence Staff, General Anil Chauhan. The two sides discussed opportunities to leverage the indigenous defence manufacturing industry.
The two countries have signed arms deals worth $400 million so far. In September 2022, Armenia signed a $245 million deal to procure Pinaka multi-rocket launch systems and ammunition from India. In November, the two countries signed a $155 million agreement to provide artillery gun systems to Armenia.
Armenia-Azerbaijan Conflict
The recent reports have fanned tensions between the two countries, which have been engaged in conflict over the Nagorno-Karabakh region since their separation from the Soviet Union in the 1990s.
In 2020, clashes broke out in the region, which is recognised as a part of Azerbaijan under international law but has a vast majority of ethnic Armenians. The war ended with Azerbaijan declaring victory after taking control of the territory.
While India is said to provide arms to Armenia, its friendship and cooperation treaty prohibits it from assisting Azerbaijan. Meanwhile, Turkey and Pakistan act as the primary military suppliers to Azerbaijan.
India’s engagement with Armenia comes in light of the void left by Russian engagement in Ukraine.