'Distorting facts for political narrative': India slams New York Times' 'misleading' article alleging HAL-Russia arms agency link

India on Monday strongly rejected a New York Times report that alleged Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), a government-owned aerospace and defence company, sold sensitive technology with potential military use to a blacklisted Russian arms agency.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) slammed the report as 'factually incorrect and misleading', accusing it of attempting to 'frame issues and distort facts to suit a political narrative'.

The MEA stressed that HAL has 'scrupulously followed all international obligations on strategic trade controls and end-user commitments'. The ministry further asserted that India's "robust legal and regulatory framework on strategic trade continues to guide overseas commercial ventures by its companies." It also urged 'reputed media outlets to undertake basic due diligence while publishing such reports, which was overlooked in this case'.

HAL has not yet responded to the allegations.

The controversy arose after the New York Times published an article titled "Major Donor to Reform UK Party Sold Parts Used In Weapons to Russian Supplier" on March 28. The report claimed that British aerospace manufacturer HR Smith Group had supplied HAL with nearly $2 million worth of transmitters, cockpit equipment, and other sensitive technology, which the British and American governments have restricted from being sold to Russia following the Ukraine war.

 

According to the report, shipping records reviewed by NYT indicated that HR Smith made 118 shipments of restricted technology to HAL between 2023 and 2024. HAL, in the same period, reportedly made 13 shipments of the same parts to Rosoboroneexport, a Russian arms agency blacklisted by the United States and the United Kingdom, with these shipments totalling over $14 million. 

The report claimed that in some instances, HAL received equipment from HR Smith and, within days, sent parts to Russia with the same identifying product codes. Rosoboroneexport is reportedly one of HAL's biggest trading partners. HR Smith's lawyer, Nick Watson, said that the sales were lawful, with the equipment intended for an Indian search-and-rescue network. He emphasised that the parts 'support life-saving operations' and 'are not designed for military use'.

However, legal experts cited by NYT suggested that the British company might have violated sanctions by failing to exercise due diligence over the sale to the Indian company. The British government had issued a 'red alert' in December 2023, warning companies about sensitive equipment being redirected to Russia via intermediaries.

A spokesman for the Reform UK party, which has received donations from H.R. Smith, dismissed the allegations as a "woeful attempt to smear Reform," stating that the donation was 'lawful'.

While the New York Times acknowledged that the records did not definitively prove that HR Smith's products ended up in Russia, it maintained that evidence suggested a direct supply chain link between the British company, HAL, and Russia’s blacklisted arms agency.