WASHINGTON – India to get $2.5 billion state of the art military dronesfrom Umired States, Indian media has reported.
The Trump administration has approved the sale of armed drones to India andhas offered integrated air and missile defence systems aimed at helping thecountry boost its military capabilities and protect shared securityinterests in the strategically important Indo-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. Anotherreason is the increasing militarisation and assertiveness of China in theIndo-Pacific region, reported international media.
According to the officials, the Trump administration is ready to offer itsbest defence technologies to India. “The United States approved the sale ofthe armed drones to India. We have offered integrated air and missiledefence technology to India,” a senior White House official told newsagency Press Trust of India (PTI).
The US official, who spoke with news agency PTI on the condition ofanonymity, did not reveal when the sale of the armed drones to India mighttake place.
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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 beoffered a Missile Technology Control Regime or MTCR Category-1 UnmannedAerial System – the Sea Guardian UAS manufactured by General Atomics.
While the deal is yet to see the light of day, the US in recent monthsinformed New Delhi about its decision to sell armed version of the Guardiandrones. “The ball is now in India’s court,” a defence industry source toldnews agency PTI. The deal, if it happens, could be in the range of over $2.5billion, the industry source told PTI
