Page 12 - The Indian EYE 082925

OPINION AUGUST 29, 2025 | The Indian Eye 12

Stealth Frigates and India–Russia

Defense Cooperation

Designed for blue water operations, the upgraded frigates are capable of conducting missions across

all four dimensions of naval warfare— surface, underwater, air and electromagnetic spectrum

RAHUL WANKHEDE

tealth frigates have been critical
assets in the evolving maritime
Ssecurity landscape. Designed
to be stealthy, agile and lethal, these
ships offer a strategic advantage in
high-stakes naval operations—rang-
ing from anti-submarine warfare to
intelligence gathering and maritime
deterrence. For a country like India,
with vast maritime interests spanning
the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and
beyond, integrating such naval plat-
forms is essential for maintaining a
credible blue-water navy.
India’s journey in acquiring and
deploying stealth frigates has been
significantly shaped by its long-stand-
ing defense partnership with Russia,
which has served as an arms supplier
and co-development partner for de-
cades. Among the most notable out-
comes of this collaboration has been
in the domain of stealth frigates. This
commentary explores the trajectory of
India–Russia defense cooperation on
stealth frigates and its future prospects.
As India continues to expand and modernize its naval capabilities, the scope for future collaboration with Russia in the maritime
TALWAR-CLASS FRIGATE domain remains important (File photo)
COOPERATION

he design of the Talwar-class frigates are fitted with two critical sys- Shipyard, while the remaining two are ship among the two constructed in
frigates imported by India in tems developed in India—the Brah- being built at Goa Shipyard Limited Russia as part of this follow-on order.
Tthe 1990s is based on the Rus- Mos supersonic cruise missile and the (GSL) in India under a technology The import cost for INS Tushil and
sian Krivak III-class frigates, which Defense Research and Development transfer arrangement. This reflects INS Tamal is approximately Rs 8,000
were modified to meet the specific Organization (DRDO)-developed deeper defense industrial cooperation crore, while the two ships being built
operational requirements of the In- hull-mounted sonar HUMSA-NG. and enhanced domestic shipbuilding at GSL are projected to cost around
dian Navy (IN). This collaborative This represents a significant advance- capabilities. Rs 13,000 crore.
effort between India and Russia com- ment in India’s capacity to adapt for- This collaborative initiative orig- Designed for blue water opera-
menced in the late 1990s, leading to eign platforms to its strategic needs, inated from an inter-governmental tions, the upgraded frigates are capa-
the induction of the first three frig- supported by Russia’s willingness agreement signed in 2016, which ble of conducting missions across all
ates—INS Talwar, Trishul and Tabar. to incorporate non-Russian systems was formalized through a contract in four dimensions of naval warfare—
These were later joined by INS Teg, onboard these vessels. Overall, the 2018. The primary objectives were to surface, underwater, air and electro-
Taraksh and Triband, delivered be- imported frigates have a total indige- enhance the IN’s stealth capabilities magnetic spectrum. These ships are
tween 2012 and 2013. nous content of 26 per cent. and to strengthen domestic shipbuild- equipped with advanced software,
Notably, all frigates in the Kri- Following the successful deploy- ing under the ‘Make in India’ pro- lethal defensive weapons and artificial
vak class are equipped with engines ment of the Talwar-class frigates, In- gramme. The new frigates are based intelligence tools for enhanced situ-
supplied by Ukraine’s Zorya Ash- dia and Russia launched a follow-on on an upgraded Talwar-class design, ational awareness and survivability.
preet. A distinguishing feature of initiative to build four more advanced incorporating higher levels of auto- The vessel can reach speeds exceed-
the Talwar-class frigates was their stealth frigates under Project 11356. mation, advanced sensors and sys- ing 55.56 km/h, powered by an ad-
hybrid configuration—combining a As part of this collaboration, two tems, and flexibility to integrate vari- vanced gas turbine propulsion system.
Russian-designed hull with a mix of ships—INS Tushil and INS Tamal— ous missiles. INS Tushil, the seventh Despite encountering obstacles
Western and Indian systems. These were constructed at Russia’s Yantar vessel in the Talwar series, is the lead Continued on next page... >>

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