As Modi visits Poland, PM Tusk eyes stronger defence industry ties with India

By Anna Koper

WARSAW (Reuters) - Poland wants to deepen its cooperation with India in the defence industry, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said on Thursday, as Warsaw seeks to benefit from New Delhi's drive to modernise its armed forces and diversify away from Russian suppliers.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is visiting Warsaw en route to Kyiv, where he has said he will "share perspectives" on the peaceful resolution of the conflict between Ukraine and Russia.

The trip follows Modi's July 8-9 visit to Moscow which drew criticism from the U.S. and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy as it coincided with a lethal Russian strike on a children's hospital in Kyiv.

"It is no coincidence that we talked about intensification in terms of the defense industry," Tusk told a news conference alongside Modi in Warsaw. "We are ready as Poland to take part in the modernisation of military equipment."

Poland has been one of Ukraine's staunchest supporters since Russia's 2022 invasion, while India has remained neutral.

Nevertheless, cooperation concerning the defence industry was high on the agenda for the first visit to Warsaw by an Indian prime minister in 45 years, officials said.

New Delhi had historically relied heavily on Moscow for defence supplies but in recent years has sought to diversify, a process that has intensified since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

A Polish official who declined to be named told Reuters that India had a lot of Soviet-era equipment such T-72 tanks which Poland was able to repair or refit, creating an opportunity for cooperation.

India recently reopened the defence wing at its embassy in Warsaw.

Modi said that India is willing to offer its help to end the conflicts in Ukraine and West Asia.

"India firmly believes that no issue can be solved on a battlefield," Modi said. "We support dialogue and diplomacy for the quick restoration of peace."

Tusk praised Modi's engagement and said the he was convinced India could play a positive role.

(Reporting by Anna Koper, Alan Charlish, Pawel Florkiewicz in Warsaw, Shilpa Jamkhandikar in Mumbai; Editing by Toby Chopra)