India has cut down its defense exports to Turkey, including explosives and detonators, due to Ankara's growing military cooperation with Islamabad, with whom New Delhi has had a decades-long strained relationship, media reported, citing sources
NEW DELHI (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 23rd October, 2019) India has cut down its defense exports to Turkey, including explosives and detonators, due to Ankara's growing military cooperation with Islamabad, with whom New Delhi has had a decades-long strained relationship, media reported, citing sources.
According the sources cited by the Economic Times, India's decision to cut down defense exports to Ankara is a precautionary measure aimed at minimizing risk that such equipment would be used against India's domestic interests.
Additionally, the sources said that there was a small likelihood that India would be renewing defense exports to Ankara in the near future due to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's comments on the Kashmir issue, which New Delhi has repeatedly stated is an internal matter.
On Monday, Indian Prime Minister Narenda Modi cancelled a two-day trip to Turkey, citing Erdogan's statement on the India-Pakistan disputed region of Kashmir as cause.
In late September, during his UN General Assembly speech, Erdogan called for a India-Pakistan dialogue on the long-disputed region of Kashmir. India responded saying the Turkish president's statement was "biased and unwarranted" and told the Turkish government to get a deeper understanding of the issue, which was an internal matter for India and Pakistan.
Although Ankara and New Delhi have traditionally been seen as allies, Turkey is now seen to be cozying up to Pakistan. Last week, Ankara backed Islamabad at the Financial Action Task Force in Paris, helping Pakistan avoid being blacklisted by the global anti-money laundering watchdog.
