US approves sale of anti-submarine warfare gear to India
US secretary of state Antony Blinken has approved a possible foreign military sale to India of anti-submarine warfare sonobuoys and related equipment for an estimated cost of $52.8 million, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) announced in Washington.
The DSCA delivered the required certification, notifying Congress of the possible sale on Friday.
The development came on a day defence minister Rajnath Singh and his American counterpart Lloyd Austin held wide-ranging talks at the Pentagon to deepen the bilateral relationship, with the dialogue putting the spotlight on a raft of issues including defence cooperation, industrial collaboration, regional security, the Indo-Pacific region, and other pressing international matters.
The equipment will improve India’s capability to meet threats by enhancing its capacity to conduct anti-submarine warfare operations from its US-origin MH-60R helicopters.
In March, India raised its first squadron of the MH-60R helicopters with the six choppers that had been delivered till then. India ordered 24 Lockheed Martin-Sikorsky MH-60R multi-role helicopters, worth around ₹17,500 crore, from the US in 2020 to modernise its ageing naval helicopter fleet.
All helicopters will be delivered by 2025.
“The Government of India has requested to buy AN/SSQ-53G High Altitude Anti-Submarine Warfare (HAASW) sonobuoys; AN/SSQ-62F HAASW sonobuoys; AN/SSQ-36 sonobuoys; technical and publications and data documentation; U.S. Government and contractor engineering and technical support; and other related elements of logistics and program services and support,” the DSCA statement said, giving details of the Indian Navy’s requirements.
The proposed sale will support the foreign policy and national security objectives of the United States by helping to strengthen the US-India strategic relationship and improving the security of a major defence partner, which continues to be an important force for political stability, peace, and economic progress in the Indo-Pacific and South Asia regions, it added.
India and the US adopted a defence industrial cooperation roadmap last year. It seeks to fast-track technology cooperation and co-production in critical areas including air combat and land mobility systems, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, munitions, and the undersea domain.
Singh and Austin met on Friday after India and the US signed two key agreements to bolster defence cooperation—the Security of Supply Arrangement (SOSA) to ensure the mutual supply of defence goods and services to resolve unanticipated supply chain disruptions and a memorandum of agreement regarding the assignment of liaison officers to enhance cooperation, understanding, interoperability, and sharing of information on matters of mutual interest.