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Tucked away in the fine print of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s visit was a small detail that the Americans must have noted with dismay. It was a request by India for the supply of 40 Sukhoi planes from Russia on an emergency basis. The contract is estimated to be worth around Rs. 8,000 crore, or US $ 2 billion, enough to put that big grin we saw on Putin’s face. But money apart, the deal, when it goes through after commercial negotiations, could cut the Americans out of what was poised to be the biggest defence purchase by any country. The possibility must have added the extra sparkle to Putin’s smile. For the past couple of years, the international arms bazaar has been buzzing impatiently for India to hit the market with a tender for 126 fighter planes to replenish its ageing Air Force fleet. It was going to be the biggest military deal ever and the Americans were hoping for a piece of the action. They first offered F-16s and when the Indians demurred, they upscaled it to F-18s. There were whispers that once the nuclear deal goes through, the US will bag the lucrative contract.

Now it seems the government is doing a rethink and the Sukhoi contract could be the first indicator of change. Along with the Russian planes, there’s a move to place an emergency order with France for 40 Mirages and renegotiate with Qatar for the 12 brand new Mirage planes it had bought but now finds no use for. The piecemeal approach is fuelled by the IAF’s rapidly depleting fighter fleet. It’s down to 34 squadrons against an accepted strength of 39 squadrons and the IAF has hit the panic button. There’s a view that it’s better to stay with the Sukhois and Mirages for which requisite infrastructure in already in place rather than switch to American fighters which will require completely new platforms for maintenance, repair, etc. A final decision is awaited but in the meantime, the Russians have walked away with a huge order. The deal was cleared by the defence ministry a few weeks back and communicated to the Russians when Putin was here. No wonder the warmth is back in Indo-Russian ties.

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After a gastronomical near-disaster with Portugese President Anibal Cavaco Silva, who came visiting earlier this month, the government was extra careful while hosting Putin. The PM chose Hyderabad House and its bland menu for the lunch he threw in Putin’s honour. The official explanation is the large space that is available at the elegant mansion that once belonged to the Nizam of Hyderabad. But the embarrassing experience with Silva was surely at the back of everyone’s mind. The PM’s lunch for Silva was held at Race Course Road and a prominent five-star hotel did the catering. Unfortunately, the food was heavily spiced and so hot that it blew the roof off the visiting dignitary’s mouth. He was barely able to eat anything. As it happened, Silva was already in poor shape after the previous night’s dinner disagreed with him. That was courtesy another five-star hotel where the Portugese President ate something to which he was allergic. A doctor had to be summoned to attend to his puffy lips. Poor Silva’s unhappy experience with Indian food didn’t stop with these two incidents. On his last day in the Capital, he was subjected to ice cold daal straight from the freezer, again at a five-star hotel. There were big sighs of relief all around when he finally took off for Goa for much-needed rest and recuperation. Putin may not have been impressed with the Hyderabad House fare, but at least he was spared the assault that Silva suffered!

Email: a_jerath@dnaindia.net