India-US drone deal: Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s scheduled visit to the United States next week, the Defense Ministry has approved the purchase of Predator armed drones from the US. The deal to buy 30 MQ-9B Predator drones under the government-to-government framework could be announced after talks between PM Modi and US President Joe Biden in Washington next week.
The deal is significant because it was the same Predator drone used to kill al-Qaeda leaders Osama bin Laden in 2011 and Ayman al-Zawahiri in Kabul in July 2022. The ‘hunter-killer’ drone from General Atomics was approved at a meeting of the Defense Acquisition Council (DAC) chaired by Defense Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday, June 15.
It is believed that the Predator drones will help India in cranking up its surveillance apparatus against China as well as in the Indian Ocean region. The long-awaited procurement approval came nearly 10 days after US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin held extensive talks with Singh, with a focus on expanding the overall strategic and defense ties between the two countries.
Key points about Deadly Predator Armed Drone:
- The MQ-9B drone is a variant of the MQ-9 “Reaper” that was used to launch a modified version of the Hellfire missile.
- Drones can perform a variety of roles including maritime surveillance, anti-submarine warfare and over-the-horizon targeting.
- There are two versions of the MQ-9B drone – the Sky Guardian and its sibling the Sea Guardian
- The drone is the first hunter-killer unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) designed for long-endurance and high-altitude surveillance.
- MQ-9B has signals intelligence and communication intelligence systems integrated onboard
- Reapers can use up to eight laser-guided missiles and an air-to-surface missile
- It can be disassembled and loaded into a container for deployment
- The MQ-9 drone is larger, heavier, more capable and can be controlled by similar ground systems.
US approves sale of armed drones to India in 2019
Earlier in 2019, the US had approved the sale of armed drones to India and even offered integrated air and missile defense systems. The Indian Navy is pushing for the purchase to boost its overall surveillance over the Indian Ocean, a region that has seen increasing intrusions by Chinese ships and submarines over the past few years.
Following the eastern Ladakh standoff, India has significantly increased its day and night surveillance along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) using a fleet of remotely piloted aircraft. Indo-US defense ties have deepened in the last few years.
India America relations
India-US bilateral relations have evolved into a “Global Strategic Partnership”, based on shared democratic values and growing convergence of interests on bilateral, regional and global issues. Regular exchanges of high-level political visits have provided sustained momentum to bilateral cooperation, while a comprehensive and ever-expanding dialogue framework has established a long-term framework for India-US engagement. Engagement.
Today, India-US bilateral cooperation is broad-based and multi-sectoral, covering trade and investment, defense and security, education, science and technology, cyber security, high technology, civil nuclear energy, space technology and applications, clean energy, environment , Agriculture and Health. India and the United States have also stepped up their cooperation within multilateral groupings such as ‘The Quad’ and ‘I2U2 Group’.
(with inputs from agencies)