 "France in advanced talks to buy India’s Pinaka rocket launcher system: Report")
France is in advanced negotiations with India to acquire a multi-barrel rocket launcher system, a potential milestone as India’s second-largest arms supplier considers purchasing weaponry from New Delhi for the first time, a senior official said on Monday.
While India remains the world’s largest arms importer, it has been actively promoting domestic defence production and steadily increasing its defence exports.
”France is in active talks for Pinaka,” Ummalaneni Raja Babu, the director general of missiles and strategic systems at India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation, told Reuters on the sidelines of the Aero India aerospace exhibition in the southern city of Bengaluru.
”A deal has not been reached yet, but the talks are continuing,” said Babu.
According to reports, the indigenous Pinaka rocket system with a range of up to 90 km (56 miles) was demonstrated to a French delegation in India about three months ago and received positive feedback.
Experts said that the Pinaka rockets can reach speeds of Mach 4.7 (5,800 km/h), making them highly challenging to intercept. Additionally, the system’s warheads can be customized for various combat scenarios.
The Pinaka weapons system is traditionally mounted on a Tatra truck for mobility, with experts adding that the weapons system allows ground forces a deep strike option and also has the capability of hitting critical military installations.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi embarked on a visit to France on Monday to co-chair an artificial intelligence summit in Paris with French President Emmanuel Macron and both leaders are scheduled to hold bilateral talks on Tuesday.
Impact Shorts
View AllIt was not immediately clear if the rocket system will feature in the talks and India’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
France’s embassy in India did not immediately respond to a request for comment outside of business hours.
France was India’s second-largest arms supplier after Russia between 2019 and 2023, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute.
The Pinaka rocket launcher system, used by the Indian Army and deployed in the 1999 war between India and Pakistan, is also being enhanced with longer ranges, Babu said.
As of now, the Indian Army operates four Pinaka regiments, with six more on order. However, it first came into use during the Kargil War of 1999, quite successfully against the Pakistan army.
It was also deployed more recently at India’s border with China amid tensions over Ladakh.
With inputs from Reuters
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