The drone deal still needs approval from Congress (Anadolu Agency)

Yesterday, Thursday, the United States gave its approval to a deal to sell advanced drones to India worth $4 billion, which enhances the military capabilities of New Delhi, whose cooperation with its American partner is increasing, amid escalating border tension with China.

This deal represents an important turning point for India, which historically relied on purchasing Russian weapons before it was affected by the sanctions imposed on Russia after its war on Ukraine.

Indian officials discussed the aircraft deal during a state visit by Prime Minister Narendra Modi last year to Washington at the invitation of President Joe Biden following India's military skirmishes with China and Pakistan.

After months of discussions, the US State Department announced that it had informed Congress about the deal, which includes 31 “31 MQ-9B Sky Guardians” aircraft, the most advanced among the “Predator” drones manufactured by General Atomics.

A statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the proposed deal would improve India’s capabilities in confronting current and future threats by activating surveillance and reconnaissance patrols with drones in the sea lanes of operations.

Congressional approval

The statement added that India has shown a commitment to modernizing its army, and will not find difficulty in absorbing these materials and services into its armed forces.

Guardians aircraft can monitor the seas as well as submarines, stay in the air for 35 hours per sortie, launch Hellfire missiles, and carry bombs weighing up to 450 kilograms.

The deal still needs the approval of the US Congress, most of whose members tend to strengthen relations with India, except for the progressives of the Democratic Party who criticize Modi's human rights record.

In 2020, relations between India and China cooled since the border clash in the Himalayas, which resulted in the deaths of 20 Indian soldiers and at least 4 Chinese soldiers.

Since then, the two countries have mobilized tens of thousands of soldiers on both sides of the border, and tensions have not subsided, despite 19 rounds of talks between senior military officials in both countries.

Source: French