Moscow Loses the Arms Market: India Is Done With Russian Junk

November 26, 2022February 17, 2026

Far from the front line, quieter battles are playing out — less dramatic, but with real potential. There’s a reason the old formula exists: war is the continuation of politics, and politics is the continuation of economics. And right now, in that economic arena, things are moving at extraordinary speed. Much has already been said about how Pootin handed his own economy a gas-powered harakiri. But something similar is now taking shape on the arms market — and Moscow loses the arms market share it held for decades, and the consequences are already visible.

Cleared Off the Civilized Market

In practice, the federation is getting expelled from Europe — the most lucrative and most civilized market — and partially from the US market as well. Heads of state who want to enter these markets pour their entire political careers into the attempt. For many, it’s the achievement of a lifetime. Pootin, meanwhile, brags about doing the opposite — pulling his companies out.

Someone probably whispers a quiet “thank you” in his direction. He vacated positions the Swamps¹ had held since the Soviet era — positions that, frankly, seemed impossible to dislodge. While the oil and gas market gets constant attention, the arms market gets far less coverage. Yet right now, the segments where the Swamps traditionally held strong positions are being redrawn at speed. India was considered the largest buyer of russian weapons and, notably, paid in real money. That is starting to change.

Nine Months of War, One Giant Anti-Advertisement

Nine months of big war made one thing obvious: weapons made in ruSSia aren’t complete junk, but they were built for yesterday’s war. For modern warfare, they fall badly short. The war in Ukraine proved this with full clarity. The forces using this hardware in Ukraine aren’t some amateur Hamas or Hezbollah outfit — they’re the Orcs’² full professional army. But the results have been predictably far worse than advertised.

So everyone who stocked up on ruSSian hardware now understands clearly: they bought the wrong thing from the wrong people. The manufacturer itself cannot demonstrate with this hardware what it promised its customers. Moscow’s arms market collapse is now visible to the entire world. The war in Ukraine became a colossal anti-advertisement for the entire Swamps military-industrial complex. pootin’s recent decision to suspend funding for military programs confirms it further — even moscow now accepts that its weapons have fallen behind modern requirements.

India looked at how the war unfolded and started drawing radical conclusions: stop spending money on depressing ruSSian junk. This is precisely where Moscow loses the arms market it spent decades building — one dissatisfied customer at a time. Indian buyers had a long list of complaints about purchased ships, aircraft, tanks, and other hardware. Moscow’s answer was always the same: you’re operating our magnificent weapons incorrectly, pay more attention to crew training and maintenance. But after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, it became clear that every single complaint was justified. Moscow, as always, turned out to be a fraudster.

France Smelled Blood

Whenever conditions for a new arms market emerge — or for a major redrawing of an old one — France appears on the horizon. Reliably. Almost immediately. French weapons have always been solid and effective. France independently manufactures the full range of armaments, from fighter jets and armored vehicles to aircraft carriers and nuclear weapons.

And you have to respect French entrepreneurial instinct. They have always found a way to sell weapons where others hesitated or couldn’t figure out how to do it safely. The French have always played close to the edge — just recall that Israel, before its strategic alliance with the US, received weapons from France. No one else was willing to step into that fire with their hardware. Now exactly the same dynamic is unfolding on the Indian front.

Paris sensed that moscow had thoroughly soiled itself on Ukrainian battlefields, and immediately offered Delhi a straightforward proposition: buy real weapons instead of russian junk. Tomorrow, French Defense Minister Sébastien Lecornu flies to India to develop military cooperation. The French already undercut the russians on a fighter jet contract — Rafales went in where Sukhois were planned. On top of that, Indian and French navies have been running joint maritime exercises for years, giving Paris a real shot at pushing moscow out on the naval front too. Lecornu has plenty to discuss and plenty to offer.

The Nails in ruSSia’s Coffin

Paris caught signals from Delhi that India is seriously considering diversifying its weapons supply. So the minister travels with concrete proposals. If India bites, new contracts could be signed as early as next year — when President Macron arrives in Delhi. Reportedly, more than 100 modern fighter jets could be on the table — along with new surface ships and submarines for the Indian Navy.

Moscow loses the arms market and is no coming back way. The Swamps are getting pushed off every market where moscow considered itself a monopolist. Is there any reason the arms market should be an exception? Especially given that France has extensive experience operating in exactly these conditions. And for us — the more nails driven into the rf’s coffin, the better and quieter life will be for us and for our children. So here’s wishing success to everyone hammering those nails.

¹Swamps – an ironic name for Russia, emphasizing decay, stagnation, and filth. The Commander of the USF, Robert Browdie, and most soldiers use this word.

²Orcs – a common term for Russians who support or participate in the armed aggression against Ukraine. Dehumanizing? Yes. Accurate? Also yes.