NEW DELHI — India has cleared a proposal to buy 114 Rafale multirole fighter jets from France to bolster its air force in its largest-ever military hardware procurement.
The push to acquire the jets comes amid a critical shortfall in the combat capability of the Indian Air Force at a time when the country has witnessed heightened tensions with Pakistan and China.
The Rafales were the biggest and most high profile acquisition to be cleared among nearly $40 billion worth of hardware that India plans to buy to modernize its military.
The go-ahead by the Defence Acquisition Council headed by Defense Minister Rajnath Singh on Jan.12 comes days before French President Emmanuel Macron visits New Delhi and paves the way for commercial and technical details to be finalized.
At a time when the…
more
Source www.defensenews.com
Terms of use and third-party services. More here.