US clears $428 million India defence support deals

Washington: The United States has approved two proposed defence support packages for India worth a combined $428.2 million, covering long-term sustainment for M777A2 Ultra-Light Howitzers and follow-on support for AH-64E Apache attack helicopters, according to notifications published by the Pentagon.

The notices, issued by the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) and published in the Federal Register last week, were recently delivered to the US Congress. The proposed sales involve support services and logistics rather than new major defence equipment.

The larger of the two packages is valued at $230 million and covers long-term sustainment support for India’s M777A2 Ultra-Light Howitzers. The proposed package includes ancillary items, spares, repair and return services, training, technical assistance, field service representatives, depot capability, and other related logistics and programme support.

In a policy justification accompanying the notification, the Pentagon said: “This proposed sale will support the foreign policy and national security objectives of the United States by helping to strengthen the US-Indian strategic relationship and to improve the security of a major defense partner which continues to be an important force for political stability, peace, and economic progress in the Indo-Pacific and South Asia regions.”

The Pentagon added that the proposed sale “will improve India’s capability to meet current and future threats, strengthen its homeland defense, and deter regional threats.”

The principal contractor for the M777A2 support package is BAE Systems, based in Cumbria, United Kingdom. The notification stated that implementation of the sale “will not require the assignment of any additional US Government or contractor representatives to India.”

A second notification, valued at $198.2 million, covers follow-on support for India’s AH-64E Apache helicopters. The package includes Apache sustainment support services, US government and contractor engineering, technical and logistics support services, technical data and publications, personnel training, and related logistics and programme support.

The Pentagon used nearly identical language in its justification, saying the sale would support US foreign policy goals and strengthen the security of a major defence partner in the Indo-Pacific region. It also said the package would improve India’s ability to address current and future threats while strengthening homeland defence and deterrence capabilities.

According to the notification, the principal contractors for the Apache support package are Boeing, based in Arlington, Virginia, and Lockheed Martin, based in Orlando, Florida. The Pentagon said there would be “no adverse impact on US defence readiness” as a result of the proposed sale.

The notices emphasised that neither proposed sale involves Major Defence Equipment and that no offset agreements are known at this time. Both cases are funded through India’s national funds.

India has emerged as one of the United States’ most important defence partners over the past two decades, with bilateral defence trade growing from near zero in 2008 to more than $20 billion. The two countries have also expanded military exercises, defence technology cooperation and logistics arrangements.

IANS