Bloomberg: India Leases Russian Nuclear Submarine for 10 Years

India will pay about $2 billion to lease a nuclear submarine from Russia, finalizing the process after about a decade of negotiations between the two countries’ defense ministries.

The deal was made possible after the settlement of price differences that had blocked the contract’s signing for many years, Bloomberg reported, citing its own sources.

The submarine will be larger than the two Russian nuclear-powered boats that were already part of the Indian Navy under previous lease agreements.

The vessel is expected to be delivered within two years, but the complexity of the nuclear project could push the delivery date to a later period.

Under the terms of the contract, the boat cannot be used in combat operations and will serve exclusively as an educational and training platform.

Its task will be to train Indian crews to master the full cycle of nuclear submarine operations, including long underwater crossings and covert operations.

The vessel will also help the Indian Navy to improve tactical and operational procedures necessary for the development of its own nuclear attack submarines.

The lease term will be 10 years and will include maintenance by the Russian side, as was the case in previous agreements between the two countries.

India returned the previously leased Russian nuclear-powered submarine K-152 Nerpa of the 971I project in 2021, refusing to extend the lease and instead continuing to develop its own nuclear program and infrastructure.

In addition, we have recently mentioned examples of military equipment leases between governments of different countries.

And the United States has been the leader in such agreements, supplying arms to many countries over the past decade.

For example, the United States has been actively promoting its fighter jets abroad through leasing.