now India and Russia are signing a new military pack it has been delayed for many years now but last week Russia approved it once India does the same the deal will come into Force now what does this deal cover it's mainly logistical issues it gives India and Russia access to each other's military facilities like ports and air bases they can train easily together visit each other's ports and also get spare parts and maintenance basically it makes military cooperation seamless India has signed similar deals with other countries too like the US France Vietnam and South Korea but this one with Russia could be more consequential there are two reasons why number one Russia is India's top military partner Reports say more than 85% of Indian weapons have Russian origin whether it's fighter jets guns or missiles so this deal is a logical next step now reason number two Russia is at War so any deal with Russia will be scrutinized by Western countries they may criticize India for any such agreement with that said let's take a closer look at the agreement what do both sides sides stand to get now Russia is looking to expand its footprint in the Indian Ocean now they are building a military base in Sudan so chances are we will see more Russian ships in this region and ships will need repair and replenishment that's where this military pact will help Indian ports could welcome and service Russian Basils Now new DA also stands to benefit Russia is a key player in the Arctic region we're talking about a place packed with resources Fisheries oil minerals the Arctic has it all but accessing the Arctic is tough especially for far off countries like India again that's where this military pact could help Russia has more than 400 military facilities in the Arctic and under this deal India could access them right now most of the AR is covered in ice throughout the year but with global warming that will change as the arctic ice melts this region will become a flash point so to recap such a military pact will benefit India and Russia Russia can access the Indian Ocean India can access the Arctic but what about the geopolitical implications there are three main ones our first is India's strategy new delhi's signed a number of military pacts in the last decade with the United States with Australia with France and with some Southeast Asian States as a result India's military is able to extend outwards especially the Indian Navy now we have seen naval missions to distant parts of the Pacific something that wasn't common before the last decade and the reason is simple earlier Logistics used to be a nightmare but these military pacts make it easier refueling is taken care of spare parts and repairs are not a worry even visas for military personnel are easier to get so India has used these agreements to its advantage to project power beyond its neighborhood secondly it's a message to the West America and its allies have tried to turn India away from Russia in some cases they have succeeded look at the period from 2009 to 2013 Russia made up 76% of India's defense Imports now look at the last 5 years it has come down to 36% so India's Reliance on Russian weapons has come down at the same time India is not abandoning Moscow the relationship is very much alive which brings us to the third impact message to China Beijing has eyes on the Indian Ocean and the Arctic so New Delhi and Moscow are joining forces they are trying to prevent a Chinese Monopoly it tells you how complicated things are on the one hand Russia and China are now close Partners on the other they compete for the same regions if India does approve this military pact it will trigger some interesting conversations the reaction from Washington will be one to watch out [Music] for on today the T20 World Cup B Mo across to the West indes expect hello I'm Alex GRE coming to you from South Africa today we have a special we start with an report on India sh for the first time since off hello and welcome to First P America I'm Eric ham coming to you live from the nation's capital of Washington DC