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| Arms supply: India wants acceptable end-use clause from US |
| Lalit K Jha / PTI / Washington Mar 24, 2009, 13:08 IST |
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India has told United States to overcome "lingering" doubts about reliability of US weapons supply to India and has asked Washington to work together to find a mutually acceptable solution on the end use clause of transferred weapons systems.
These issues were raised at crucial meetings held by Prime Minister's Special Envoy Shyam Saran with top US officials.
Saran, who arrived here yesterday on a four-day visit, said India and the US needed to work together to find a mutually acceptable solution which will take care of US legal requirement about end use monitoring of transferred defence system, as well as "meet out sensitivities."
"I am certain we will be able to do so quickly given our past experience and also given the interest both our countries have in strengthening this relationship," he said.
Conveying to US that despite the economic slowdown, there would be no let up in India's drive to modernise its armed forces, Saran said if India maintains its current level of defence spending, it would be on course to meet its medium and long term goals of forces up gradation.
He told the US officials that a growing part of the expected 10-year acquisition plan of $120 billion could be re-oriented towards the US.
With such huge market for US weapons systems, New Delhi has told Washington this would require the US to overcome lingering Indian doubts about the reliability of the American supplies. India and US have recently concluded mega defence deals for transfer of huge ship landing dock, weapon locating radars, medium transport aircrafts for the IAF and long range surveillance aircrafts for the Navy.
But, some of these weapons purchases have been delayed due to US insistence on going ahead with the end users clause which gives American officials the right to monitor that the weapons systems remain with agencies they are sold to.
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