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Bees swarm around India's
honeypot
By David Isenberg
Judging by the number of exhibitions and
representatives at the recent Aero India 2003
international airspace show in in Bangalore, India is
the fair maiden whom everyone wants to romance. According
to estimates, India imports US$1.5 billion worth of
military hardware every year. Since 1960, the country
has received $22.8 billion worth of weapons, and the sum
may increase by $10 billion over the next seven years.
And one of the most avid suitors is Russia.
Russia's display was twice as large as last
year. Almost 60 Russian companies exhibited around 300
products. Russian efforts are understandable when one
considers that aviation accounts for almost 75 percent
of Russian arms exports. Most of it is sold to India,
China, and Southeast Asia. As all major and potential
customers attend the Air India 2003 expo, the exhibition
is even more important than those in France or Great
Britain.
As noted in the Russian business
newspaper Vremya MN, this is probably the first time
that the Russian military-industrial complex has
displayed so many planes and helicopters abroad. The
Sukhoi exhibit includes virtually the whole range of
export models: SU-27SK, SU-30MK, SU-35, SU-33 naval
aircraft, SU-49 combat training planes, and the SU-32
fighter-bomber. The MiG is showing a modified MiG-29M2
and MiG-AT combat training plane. The KAMOV and MIL
enterprises are displaying a broad range: from the KA-31
to the KA-50 Black Shark to the MI-28N (night
helicopter) and a whole series of modified MI-35s.
SU-30MKI planes from the Indian Air Force
participated in the show. Even the Russian military does
not have these fighters.
Russian and Indian
experts discussed a project to establish a joint venture
for building a new Russian-Indian transport plane based
on the Il-214 multipurpose transport aircraft. The
meeting was attended by representatives of the Hindustan
Aeronautics Limited aircraft-building corporation (HAL),
Russia's Irkut research and production corporation, the
Ilyushin aircraft building complex and the
Rosoboronexport state arms trader.
And Indian
Defense Minister George Fernandes announced that a
contract to pass over the Admiral Gorshkov heavy
aircraft carrier to India would be signed in the near
future.
These sales and transfers follow
significant cooperation between Russia and India. They
already have established joint ventures in work on new
weapons systems. The Reutov company and the Defense
Research Directorate of India have set up the Bramos
company. It has already designed a supersonic anti-ship
missile with a range of 300 kilometers. The missile is a
modification of the Onyx/Yakhont Russian missile, with
its guidance system and computer designed by Indian
specialists. The Russian and Indian navies will receive
the first missiles of this type in 2004.
The
Irkut company and HAL have signed a pre-contract
agreement for the licensed production of some parts of
SU-30MKIs in India. New Delhi is considering over 350
projects in the sphere of military-technical cooperation
at present.
But while Russia may be among the
most fervent arms seller to India, it is hardly the only
one. Another is Israel, which also has significant ties
with India. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited together with
Israel Aircraft Industries Ltd showed HAL Advanced Light
Helicopter (DHRUV) demonstrator, equipped with IAIs
Integrated Avionics Package for helicopters.
IAI
is delivering $300 million worth of unmanned aerial
vehicles to India and advanced negotiations have been
going on to supply Phalcon spy planes to New Delhi.
Another Israeli firm, Tadiran Communications, which
specializes in military communications, is also
providing millions of dollars worth of equipment to New
Delhi.
Israel Military Industries plans to
collaborate with India's defense ministry and will open
an office in New Delhi to boost arms sales estimated at
$1 billion. While IMI did not provide details about
possible deals with Indian defense companies, it
estimated potential arms sales to India at $1 billion,
Israel's leading business daily Globes has reported.
Other Israeli arms deals with India include
Barak ship point missile defense system and Elta
Electronics Industries' Green Pine missile detection
radar. And artillery producer Soltam Systems announced
it would supply tens of millions of dollars' worth of
artillery to the Indian army.
But the newest,
and potentially most significant suitor is the United
States. In the aftermath of September 11, the US
government has sought to minimize its past differences
with India, a country banned from US weapons sales in
1998 after India conducted a nuclear-arms test, and to
instead strengthen military ties between the two
countries.
US Ambassador Robert Blackwill,
speaking at the opening of the US pavilion at the air
show, noted that since President George W Bush lifted
sanctions in 2001, US military sales to India "jumped
from near zero" to more than $190 million today.
In that regard the United States has eased its
rules on the export of dual-use technology to India. The
sale of such technology, or hi-tech products that could
also have military applications, to India has been
banned since the country became a nuclear power in 1998.
Indian Foreign Secretary Kanwal Sibal and US
Commerce Undersecretary Kenneth Juster signed an accord
to ease the export rules and set up an India-US High
Technology Cooperation Group to boost bilateral trade.
The ambassador also claimed that the Indian
government had already expressed interest in attack,
reconnaissance and transport helicopters in addition to
acquiring target drones for the navy. Accordingly, a
high-level US naval delegation is visiting India this
month to discuss the possible sale of US Navy P3
maritime patrol aircraft. He also said that the Bush
administration had worked with the US Congress to amend
the law suitably to facilitate the export to India of
items on the US Munitions List. Since last October 24,
only major defense equipment sales above $14 million
require congressional notification, a change that puts
India in a category with such US allies as South Korea
and Japan.
And in a bid for India's market,
Lockheed Martin Aeronautics offered a wide range of
hardware, including F-16 fighter jets to replace India's
aging fleet of Soviet-built MiG-21 warplanes. The offer,
including technology transfers and joint ventures, came
ahead of a visit to India by French Prime Minister
Jean-Pierre Raffarin, expected to discuss an $8 billion
Mirage-2000 deal with India.
And Lockheed Martin
also invited India to participate in the Joint Strike
Fighter (JSF) global project it leads. That program,
worth $20 billion, has 100 overseas partners and plans
to manufacture 2,000 aircraft, which can serve both the
navy and air force, for Britain and the US before
selling to others. Lockheed also said the company wants
to sell or locally build its C-130 cargo planes.
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