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US lines up exercises, arms offers for India |
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The US will step up its engagement with India’s armed forces in training exercises even as it offers a wide array of sophisticated military hardware ranging from F-16 jets to the Patriot missile defence system.
Bilateral exercises between the armies of India and the US will be progressively scaled up to involve brigade-level forces, or up to 4,000 troops from each side, by 2007, senior US officials have said.
Briefing a select group of journalists, the officials said the US was willing to sell to India sophisticated hi-tech defence equipment, including early warning systems and the latest version of the Patriot system, known as the Guided Enhanced Missile (GEM) Plus.
Also on offer were F-16 and F-18 fighters, P3C Orion maritime surveillance aircraft, combat parachutes, Sea Hawk helicopters, avionics and defensive systems for aircraft, night vision devices and precision-guided munitions.
“The objective is (to elevate defence cooperation with India to) the kind of relation we enjoy with our closest allies and friends,” said an official.
The officials, however, insisted the US efforts to build a strategic partnership with India were independent of New Delhi buying American military hardware.
Referring to joint training programmes, the US officials said India and the US had a “very robust schedule” of exercises involving the Army, Navy and Air Force.
Following an upturn in defence ties over the past few years, the two sides have conducted some 20 exercises, including the Malabar series of naval exercises and Air Force manoeuvres at Gwalior and Alaska.
In November, the US will send its F-16 jets - the same aircraft to be sold to Pakistan - and airborne warning and control aircraft for an exercise at the Kalaikunda airbase in West Bengal.
Indian and US special forces will conduct a company-level exercise in California later this year, the officials said. This was in line with plans to progress towards larger wargames involving brigade-level forces.
Referring to support for training programmes, the officials said Washington had provided $1.4 million under the International Military Education and Training programme to train 56 Indian in America, $800,000 for equipment and training for peacekeeping operations and $200,000 for training civilian and military personnel for counter-terrorism operations.
India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and the US Department of Defence are also set to sign agreement on sharing of information between their laboratories, the officials said.
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