Russian Experts Say Reported Sale of Jet Engine to Pak will Benefit India
If reports about Russia providing engines for the JF-17 are correct, it actually benefits India in two ways, said Pyotr Topychkanov, head of the Section on New Challenges in South and Southeast Asia at Moscow’s Primakov Institute
Moscow: Russian defence experts on Sunday said the reported sale of RD-93 engines to Pakistan for integration into the JF-17 fighter jet could actually benefit India, dismissing opposition criticism of the Indian government as unjustified.
“I don't think the criticism here is justified. If reports about Russia providing engines for the JF-17 are correct, it actually benefits India in two ways,” said Pyotr Topychkanov, head of the Section on New Challenges in South and Southeast Asia at Moscow’s Primakov Institute.
“Firstly, it shows that China and Pakistan haven’t yet managed to replace the Russian-origin engine. Secondly, the new aircraft will be familiar and predictable to India, especially since they share the same engine and India observed the JF-17’s operational use during the May 2025 crisis (Operation Sindoor),” he added.
He recalled that China had earlier sought RD-93 engines from Russia for its FC-17 jets as a stop-gap measure, a matter flagged during the Vajpayee and Manmohan Singh governments.
Another expert noted that Moscow had assured New Delhi the RD-93 deal was purely commercial, with no transfer of technology, while India received a superior RD-33 engine license with ToT.
The RD-93, made by the Klimov plant, offers more thrust but a shorter service life (2,200 hours) compared to the RD-33’s 4,000 hours.
There was no official confirmation of the sale.
Meanwhile, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh demanded answers from the government, while the BJP dismissed the reports as “reckless information warfare” and accused Congress of siding with the enemy.
