(ORDO NEWS) — At the MAKS-2021 air show, Russia stunned everyone with the new Checkmate stealth fighter. Foreign military analysts tried to look at Checkmate from all angles to understand its combat capabilities. But an expert from The National Interest decided to analyze its export potential. So read on – which countries will buy the new Russian stealth fighter.
The new Russian fifth-generation stealth fighter Checkmate is called a domestic aircraft that will be sold abroad. This raises the question of which countries can become customers.
Will Russia start supplying “Checkmate” to the United Arab Emirates, which have expressed interest in purchasing the American F-35? Or maybe Russia will even offer its new product to Iran, Turkey and other countries wishing to get fifth generation aircraft?
It makes sense for Russia to form a coalition of states with Checkmates in service to counter the massive, multinational, data-sharing strike network that will emerge from the F-35. But there are not so many countries in the world willing to acquire “Checkmate” in order to create a counterbalance to the global F-35 program.
How about India? Of course, India is an ally of the United States, and it is committed to the ideals of non-alignment. The country is considered an extremely important part of the American strategy to contain and intimidate China. Why doesn’t India have an F-35? It is noteworthy that some countries friendly with the United States are acquiring Russian-made military equipment. For example, Turkey and India spent a lot of money on the Russian-made S-400 anti-aircraft missile systems, which was not to the liking of the Pentagon leadership.
The question of the demand for heavy cargo hangs over the performance and prospects of the Checkmate aircraft. First of all, will it be able to create real competition for the fifth generation rival aircraft? This question remains unanswered, and therefore it is not known whether India will strengthen its deterrent and deterrent capabilities if it acquires a Russian fighter jet. In addition, the ability to create a collective threat depends on how successfully and reliably networked work with other Checkmate aircraft and with machines of the fourth generation.
The combat effect of the F-35, for example, is greatly enhanced by its ability to operate online and as part of a large strike force. Does Shah and Mata have something comparable to the Multifunction Advanced Data Link, to which the F-35 is connected? Will Russia be able to produce a large enough number of such aircraft so that, if successfully networking and delivering to interested customers, they can counterbalance the deterrent and intimidating effect of the F-35? Most probably not.
Further, India is in many ways an American ally because both countries have an interest in containing China. Border clashes between India and China create the possibility of some kind of confrontation. Such a prospect is unlikely to disappear, and therefore, it will be very strongly reflected in Indian military thought. India does not have enough common interests with Russia to invest in a networked, combined Checkmate fleet. Consequently, if India buys such machines, it will use them for its own purposes, and not in order to create some kind of global and multinational alliance of “Check and Mats”.
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