*NEW DELHI: *India may finally be able to acquire armed drones from theUnited States that could transform the capabilities of the armed forces notjust in strikes against Pakistan and China over land and sea but also inoperations against terrorists.
This comes after the Trump administration came up with a new policy onexport of unmanned aerial systems that allows the use of drones to fulfill”‘counter-terrorism objectives”. The policy comes just a day after USPresident Donald Trump promised to short-circuit the long-winded process tosell the drones to its allies, NDTV has reported.
For India, it opens up the possibility of the use of drones in operationsagainst terrorist launch-pads along the Line of Control if the centre wereto go ahead with the purchase..
The policy does, however, require safeguards to ensure that partner nationswho acquire US drones do not “conduct unlawful surveillance or use unlawfulforce against their domestic populations”. It also says these can be usedin operations only when “there is a lawful basis for resorting to the useof force under international law, such as national self defence”.
Sales of these drones can now be made through Direct Commercial Sales fromcompanies such as the US firm General Atomics, which has already been intalkslink>withthe Indian Navy for sale of 22 Predator B ‘Sea Guardian’ drones formaritime reconnaissance operations over the Indian Ocean.
While India was so far looking at unarmed versions of the Sea Guardian in adeal estimated to be worth approximately $2 billion, the new policy makesit possible for New Delhi to acquire variants for the Air Force and Armywith weaponry including the AGM-114 Hellfire missile which has been used byUS forces for precision strikes and targeted killings of high-profileterrorist targets in Afghanistan and Pakistan.link>
A US MQ-9 Reaper drone sits armed with Hellfire missiles and a 500-poundbomb.So far, Indian armed forces operate a host of Israeli made drones includinga limited number of IAI Harpy systems, an anti-radiation drone that homesonto radio emissions which it then attacks in a suicide mission where thedrone itself is destroyed after it crashes onto its target. The dronesIndia is looking to acquire from the United States are larger, more heavilyarmed and significantly more capable.
The new US policy clearly states that the US will allow the transfer ofdrones for use “in situations where it will enhance those partners’security and their ability to advance shared security or counterterrorismobjectives”.
While the new US policy will be welcomed in New Delhi which has beenlooking to step up the offensive capability of its drone fleet, there maystill be concerns on US “End-Use Monitoring and Additional SecurityConditions”.
The new policy requires the use of top of the line US-made drones ”shallrequire periodic consultations with the United States Government on theiruse”.
Typically, this means India would have to allow the visit of US militaryadvisors to military bases to verify how US-built drones are being used.
India has already let Washington know that it considers all End-UseMonitoring to be intrusive though New Delhi realises that US law mandatesmonitoring under certain circumstances.
For the United States, the Administration’s new drone export policy willallow US firms to compete more effectively with foreign competition fromstrategic rivals such as China.
According to Dr. Peter Navarro, Assistant to US President Donald Trump forTrade and Manufacturing Policy, the market for drones could be worth morethan $50 billion a year within the next decade.
“Already, we are seeing Chinese replicas of American [unmanned drone]technology deployed on the runways in the Middle East. In June, at theParis Air Show, China’s Chengdu Aircraft Group featured its Wing Loong II,a clear knockoff of [the] General Atomics Reaper,” Dr Navarro said.