April 09, 2016
India is in talks with United States (US) to acquire 40 Predator surveillance drones in bid to improve intelligence gathering near its vast border with its two regional rivals – Pakistan and China.
A high ranked official in the US confirmed the report to Reuters, but did not reveal whether talks have reached an advanced stage.
the Indian Navy. However, it is a government-to-government discussion,” Vivek Lall, chief executive of US and International Strategic Development at San Diego-based General Atomics, told Reuters.
India’s push for US drones comes as US Defense Secretary Ash Carter heads to New Delhi this weekend for talks to deepen military collaboration with India.
India is likely to put forward request for surveillance drone during Ash Carter’s meeting with Indian Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, according to sources in New Delhi.
Apart from surveillance drone, India is also likely to push for 100 armed Predator C Avenger aircraft from the US, officials from New Delhi have confirmed.
Pakistan and China have not issued any official statement on India’s latest arm acquisition plans, but the move is likely to infuriate officials in Islamabad and Beijing.
Pakistan and China share acrimonious relationship with India owing to unresolved border disputes. Both nations have fought war against India to settle border disputes, but the issues have remain unresolved to this day.
The unresolved border issues often leads to border skirmishes and continues to fuel an arms race as well as political tensions between these three Asian countries.
