*Washington:* The Donald Trump Administration has approved the sale ofarmed drones to India and has offered integrated air and missile defencesystems aimed at helping the country boost its military capabilities andprotect shared security interests in the strategically importantIndo-Pacific region.
The approval-cum-offer from the US came in the aftermath of the February 14Pulwama terrorist attack in which 40 Indian soldiers were killed and theincreasing militarisation and assertiveness of China in the Indo-Pacificocean.
According to the officials, the Trump administration is ready to offer itsbest defence technologies to India.
“The United States approved the sale of the armed drones to India. We haveoffered integrated air and missile defence technology to India,” a seniorWhite House official told PTI.
The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, did not reveal whenthe sale of the armed drones to India took place.
During the June 2017 meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi andPresident Donald Trump, the US had agreed to sell surveillance version ofthe Guardian drones to India.
India was the first non-treaty partner to be offered a MTCR Category-1Unmanned Aerial System the Sea Guardian UAS manufactured by General Atomics.
While the deal is yet to see the light of the day, mainly because of thedelay in decision making process by India in view of the general elections,the US in recent months informed New Delhi about its decision to sell armedversion of the Guardian drones.
The ball is now in India’s court, a defence industry source told PTI.
The deal, if it happens, could be in the range of over USD 2.5 billion, theindustry source said.
Close on the heels of armed drones, which will have its implications inSouth Asia and Indo-Pacific region, the US has also offered its integrateddefense missile capabilities to India.
While officials are tight-lipped about it, the offer is said to be abouttwo of its latest systems: Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system(THAAD), which is highly effective when used against long-range ballisticmissiles and Patriot Missile defence system.
India, which has already signed an agreement with Russia to purchase S-400missile defence system, is yet to respond to the American offer. TheAmerican offer, which came of its own, is currently being studied in NewDelhi.
“We want India to have our best technology, and we want to see Indiaimprove its defence capabilities so that it can be a net provider ofsecurity in the broader Indo-Pacific region,” the senior White Houseofficial, told PTI.
Read Top Stories
In a fact sheet on “US Security Cooperation with India” issued this week,the State Department joined the White House in trying to help strengthenits defence capabilities mainly due to the Indo-Pacific region.
“India plays a vital role in the US vision for a free and openIndo-Pacific,” said the fact sheet issued by the Bureau of PoliticalMilitary Affairs of the State Department.
Towards this end, in 2016, the US designated India as a Major DefensePartner.
Commensurate with this designation, India last year was granted StrategicTrade Authorization tier 1 status, which allows India to receivelicense-free access to a wide range of military and dual-use technologiesthat are regulated by the Department of Commerce, it said.
With a Communications, Compatibility and Security Agreement (COMCASA) andother enabling agreements now in place, US-India defense trade cooperationcontinues to expand, it said.
Some of the recent top defense sales to India include: MH-60R Seahawkhelicopters (USD 2.6 billion), Apache helicopters (USD 2.3 billion), P-8Imaritime patrol aircraft (USD 3 billion), and M777 howitzers (USD 737million).
The State Department is also pushing for Lockheed Martin F-21 and BoeingF-18/A ? two state-of-the-art fighter aircraft that India is currentlyevaluating.
“These platforms provide critical opportunities to enhance India’s militarycapabilities and protect shared security interests in the Indo-Pacificregion,” the State Department fact sheet said.
“We are now reaching agreements that we did not have before that allow usto consider sales that were incomprehensible five years ago,” a seniorState Department official told a group of reporters last week.
The choices that are made now will establish the framework for the future,the official said.
“We certainly have the ambitions for the broadest possible, deepestpossible military relationship with India,” said the official requestinganonymity.
