吴敏文
By Wu Minwen
近日，印度宣布2023-2024财年国防预算为730亿美元，比上一财年增长13%。无论绝对数额还是增长幅度，都备受各国注目。
Recently, India announced that the defense budget for FY2023-2024 will be $73 billion, an increase of 13 percent over the previous fiscal year. These surging figures have attracted worldwide attentions.
近年来，印度年度军费连续保持大幅增长。据统计，从2008年以来，印度军费显著增长的财年就有2008-2009财年，增长幅度为10%，2009-2010财年增长幅度为34%，2011-2012财年增幅为12%，2014-2015财年为12%，2018-2019财年增幅为13%。印度2023-2024财年国防预算为730亿美元，约占印度GDP的2%。
India's annual military expenditure has been increasing rapidly in recent years, with 10 percent increase in FY2008-2009, 34 percent increase in FY2009-2010, 12 percent increase in FY2011-2012, 12 percent in FY2014-2015 and 13 percent in FY2018-2019. The $73 billion defense budget announced this year accounts for about 2 percent of India's GDP.
印度的地缘战略目标首先是主导南亚，主宰印度洋。从地缘环境上看，印度不仅是南亚第一大国，而且地处南亚的中心地带。得天独厚的地缘优势，使得印度在南亚具有举足轻重的地位和影响。在此基础上，印度几乎所有的防务理论和学说，都强调印度在南亚的所谓“决定性主导作用”。 在军事装备现代化方面，近年来印度莫迪政府不仅加大对外采购现代化装备的力度，而且加强了自研自产，这都对军费投入提供了动力和需求。
India has been chasing a dominant position in South Asia and the Indian Ocean. Almost all of India's defense theories called for the so-called "decisive and leading role" in South Asia. In terms of modernizing military equipment, the Modi government has increased the intensity of foreign procurement of modern equipment in recent years, and also strengthened self-research and production, which provides impetus and demand for military expenditure.
在2022年印度独立75周年庆典上，莫迪提出了未来25年让印度成为发达国家的目标。毫无疑问，这一国家发展目标必然包含其军事力量和实力指标。但在实现目标的进程中，武器装备的自主研发生产是一个明显的软肋。在印度主要作为苏联、俄罗斯战略盟国时，苏制和俄制武器是印度外购军备的主要来源。近年来，美国加大了拉拢印度以服务其全球战略的力度，开始向印度出售先进武器装备。
At the celebration marking the 75th anniversary of India's independence in 2022, Modi proposed the goal of making India a developed country in the next 25 years. This national development goal necessarily includes military power and strength indicators. However, the independent R&D and production of weapons and equipment is an obvious weakness. While being the strategic allies of the Soviet Union and Russia, Soviet-made and Russian-made weapons were the main source of India's outsourced armaments. In recent years, the US has stepped up its efforts to win over India to serve its global strategy and has begun selling advanced weapons and equipment to India.
这些外购武器装备每年耗费印度数十亿美元，不同制式的武器装备不仅操作规程不一、使用难度大，更大的问题是由于技术体制不同，无法在战场上形成一体化作战体系。现代战争是体系对抗，杂牌装备不仅难以发挥作战效能，甚至自身生存都存在极大隐患。
These outsourced weapons and equipment cost India billions of dollars every year. Different types of weapons and equipment not only had different operating procedures, but also brought great difficulty in use, because an integrated combat system couldn’t be formed on the battlefield. Modern warfare is a systemic confrontation, but the hybrid equipment posed difficulties in exerting combat effectiveness, and even great hidden dangers for its own survival.
为此，印度军方下大力气推进武器装备的自研自产，但实际效果却不尽如人意。然而没有自主国防工业体系的国家是无法实现大国梦的，印度仍然在装备自研自产方面全力推进。印度的目标是将武器装备进口比例从目前的70%降至40%。
Therefore, the Indian military has made great efforts to promote the self-research and production of weapons and equipment, with a goal to reduce the proportion of arms and equipment imports from the current 70 percent to 40 percent. However, the result was not satisfactory due to lacking of independent national defense industrial system.
与此同时，印度不遗余力发展航母，为“主宰印度洋”提供支撑。印度最先拥有的航母是从俄罗斯购买的“基辅”级“戈尔什科夫海军上将”号，2004年购入并开始改造，2013年11月16日交付印度海军，被命名为“超日王”号。2022年7月，印度第一艘排水量4.4万吨的国产航母“维克兰特”号完成主要装备和系统的第四阶段海试。随即，印度海军决定再订购1艘国产航母，排水量将达6.5万吨。“维克兰特”号航母预计将在2023年年底形成战斗力，而第二艘国产航母将在8年内打造完成。届时，印度将拥有其海军所希望的共计3艘航母。
India also spared no effort to develop aircraft carriers to provide support for "dominating the Indian Ocean". India purchased the Kiev class Admiral Gorshkov from Russia in 2004 as its first aircraft carrier. Named Vikramaditya, it was delivered to the Indian Navy on November 16, 2013. In July 2022, India's first homemade aircraft carrier Vikrant with a displacement of 44,000 tons completed the fourth phase of sea trials of major equipment and systems. Immediately, the Indian Navy decided to order another domestic aircraft carrier with a displacement of 65,000 tons. The Vikrantaircraft carrier is expected to form combat effectiveness by the end of 2023, and the second homemade aircraft carrier will be built within eight years. At that time, India navy is expected to have a total of three aircraft carriers.
在俄乌冲突、美国加速推进印太战略的大背景下，各国为了自身安全以及应对可能遭遇的战争威胁，事实上正进行一场新的军备竞赛。尤其是欧洲国家和北约盟国，一夜之间纷纷增加本国的防务开支。印度的2023-2024财年国防预算增幅达13%，作为南亚大国和事实上的核国家，其作为至少在区域具有示范效果和刺激作用，必然导致邻国和相关国家采取应对举措，从而产生推高军备竞赛热度的效果。
Against the background of the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the US’s accelerated progress of “Indo-Pacific strategy”, countries are in fact engaged in a new round of arms race to cope with possible war threats. In particular, European countries and NATO allies have increased their national defense spending overnight. India's defense budget for FY2023-2024 would increase by 13 percent. As a major South Asian country and a de facto nuclear power, it made a demonstrative and stimulating effect at least in the region, which inevitably led to a response by neighboring countries and related countries, and might intensify the arms race.
（作者单位：国防科技大学信息通信学院）
(Editor's note: The author is from the School of Information and Communication, PLA National University of Defense Technology. Originally published on zqb.cyol.com, this article is translated from Chinese into English and edited by the China Military Online. The information and opinions in this article do not necessarily reflect the views of eng.chinamil.com.cn.)
