Even as the US approved the lease of naval reconnaissance aircraft and sales of F-16 fighters were mooted, India announced US$ 9bn worth of military are underway with Russia.
Maintaining that Russia will remain India’s ‘topmost’ defence partner in the years to come, Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee today said military deals worth USD 9 billion are currently underway with Moscow.
“I want to assure you that Russia has been and will remain India’s largest defence partner in the years to come,” Mukherjee said inaugurating the 5th session of the Indo-Russian Inter-Governmental Commission on Military Technical Cooperation (IRIGC-MTC) here.
“The work is currently underway on execution of military contracts worth 9 billion dollars, thus consolidating Russia as India’s topmost partner in the military-technical cooperation,” he said.
According to the Russian Defence Ministry, contracts worth USD 10 billion are to be executed within next four years including the delivery of Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier, deck-based MiG-29K fighters and Kamov helicopters.
Meanwhile, the Pentagon has approved the lease of two P-3C reconnaissance aircraft for India and notified the US Congress of a $ 133 million military sale to provide logistics support for the deal that includes training devices, test equipment and spare parts, The Hindu reported.
Announcing the deal, the Pentagon’s Defence Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) said the proposed sale would help “improve the security of an important ally and strengthen US-India strategic partnership”.
The P-3C aircraft, built by Lockheed Martin, will replace the Navy’s Soviet IL-38 May aircraft that are “quickly reaching the end of their fatigue and operational service life”.
This modernisation would enhance the capabilities of the Navy, support its regional influence and meet its legitimate needs of self-defence, said the DSCA, which is the US Defence Department’s nodal agency for foreign military sales.
It said India needed the advanced aircraft for land-based maritime patrol and reconnaissance to protect its economic exclusion zone and to guard against submarines and surface warfare ships.
The US’s strategic relationship with India “continues to be an important force for political stability, peace and economic progress in South Asia,” the DSCA said.
It emphasised that the proposed sale will not affect the basic military balance of the region; nor will it have any adverse impact on the US’s own defence readiness.
“India is capable of absorbing and maintaining these additional aircraft in its inventory,” it told Congress, which has 30 days for blocking the sale - a possibility regarded as most unlikely.
The deal comes in the wake of the broad Indo-US defence agreement to give a fillip to military cooperation between the two countries.
Implementation of the logistics support plan will be needed prior to the delivery of the first aircraft and continued involvement by the US and contractor representatives for three years.
Meanwhile, US defence major Lockheed Martin Corp. is optimistic it will win an order for F-16 jets from India’s air force, which plans to buy more than 120 new combat aircraft.
US defence major Lockheed Martin, which is in the race to supply some of the fighter planes sought by India, is eyeing other opportunities to sell aircraft and hardware worth billions of dollars to the Indian armed forces.
The company is also expected to bid for an Indian Navy proposal to acquire some 30 submarine hunter helicopters, the Indian Air Force’s (IAF) plan to buy 80 medium-lift helicopters and an Indian Army programme to acquire tactical missiles.
Lockheed also hopes to collaborate with India’s state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. on the development and co-production of fighter jets, Vice President Orville Prins said late Monday.
Prins said he is “cautiously optimistic” that India will order its F-16 jets. India’s air force currently has no American-made aircraft and uses mostly Russian-made MiG fighters, along with British Jaguars and French Mirage aircraft.
India has never bought American planes for its air force because of frosty relations with Washington during the Cold War period, when New Delhi was a close ally of the former Soviet Union.
But relations have rapidly warmed in recent years, and the two countries have expanded their strategic cooperation, including in civilian nuclear energy.
A key factor for India in choosing new planes is the supplier’s commitment to share technologies to make spare parts, and to develop and produce aircraft in India.
Maintaining that Russia will remain India’s ‘topmost’ defence partner in the years to come, Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee today said military deals worth USD 9 billion are currently underway with Moscow.
“I want to assure you that Russia has been and will remain India’s largest defence partner in the years to come,” Mukherjee said inaugurating the 5th session of the Indo-Russian Inter-Governmental Commission on Military Technical Cooperation (IRIGC-MTC) here.
“The work is currently underway on execution of military contracts worth 9 billion dollars, thus consolidating Russia as India’s topmost partner in the military-technical cooperation,” he said.
According to the Russian Defence Ministry, contracts worth USD 10 billion are to be executed within next four years including the delivery of Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier, deck-based MiG-29K fighters and Kamov helicopters.
Meanwhile, the Pentagon has approved the lease of two P-3C reconnaissance aircraft for India and notified the US Congress of a $ 133 million military sale to provide logistics support for the deal that includes training devices, test equipment and spare parts, The Hindu reported.
Announcing the deal, the Pentagon’s Defence Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) said the proposed sale would help “improve the security of an important ally and strengthen US-India strategic partnership”.
The P-3C aircraft, built by Lockheed Martin, will replace the Navy’s Soviet IL-38 May aircraft that are “quickly reaching the end of their fatigue and operational service life”.
This modernisation would enhance the capabilities of the Navy, support its regional influence and meet its legitimate needs of self-defence, said the DSCA, which is the US Defence Department’s nodal agency for foreign military sales.
It said India needed the advanced aircraft for land-based maritime patrol and reconnaissance to protect its economic exclusion zone and to guard against submarines and surface warfare ships.
The US’s strategic relationship with India “continues to be an important force for political stability, peace and economic progress in South Asia,” the DSCA said.
It emphasised that the proposed sale will not affect the basic military balance of the region; nor will it have any adverse impact on the US’s own defence readiness.
“India is capable of absorbing and maintaining these additional aircraft in its inventory,” it told Congress, which has 30 days for blocking the sale - a possibility regarded as most unlikely.
The deal comes in the wake of the broad Indo-US defence agreement to give a fillip to military cooperation between the two countries.
Implementation of the logistics support plan will be needed prior to the delivery of the first aircraft and continued involvement by the US and contractor representatives for three years.
Meanwhile, US defence major Lockheed Martin Corp. is optimistic it will win an order for F-16 jets from India’s air force, which plans to buy more than 120 new combat aircraft.
US defence major Lockheed Martin, which is in the race to supply some of the fighter planes sought by India, is eyeing other opportunities to sell aircraft and hardware worth billions of dollars to the Indian armed forces.
The company is also expected to bid for an Indian Navy proposal to acquire some 30 submarine hunter helicopters, the Indian Air Force’s (IAF) plan to buy 80 medium-lift helicopters and an Indian Army programme to acquire tactical missiles.
Lockheed also hopes to collaborate with India’s state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. on the development and co-production of fighter jets, Vice President Orville Prins said late Monday.
Prins said he is “cautiously optimistic” that India will order its F-16 jets. India’s air force currently has no American-made aircraft and uses mostly Russian-made MiG fighters, along with British Jaguars and French Mirage aircraft.
India has never bought American planes for its air force because of frosty relations with Washington during the Cold War period, when New Delhi was a close ally of the former Soviet Union.
But relations have rapidly warmed in recent years, and the two countries have expanded their strategic cooperation, including in civilian nuclear energy.
A key factor for India in choosing new planes is the supplier’s commitment to share technologies to make spare parts, and to develop and produce aircraft in India.
