USA, presently India’s sixth-biggest arms supplier, will likely be among the top three suppliers alongside Israel and Russia, in the next couple of years.

India has made a definitive turn away from Russia and other longtime partners France, Sweden and UK to Israel and America to procure arms.

Despite issues related to Washington’s anti-outsourcing stance, the visit of US President Barack Obama in November will buttress Indo-American defence ties, aside from deepening civil nuclear partnerships.

A strategic shift in the relations between India and America over the last couple of years has resulted in the signing of the landmark civil nuclear deal and defence agreements

America has been promoting India as a counterweight to China in the region, apart from tapping new business opportunities.

USA, presently India’s sixth biggest arms supplier, will likely be among the top three suppliers alongside Israel and Russia, in the next couple of years.

Over the last couple of years, the big arms deals inked with America include six C-130J Super Hercules aircraft for almost US$1 billion (2007) and eight Boeing P-8I planes for over US$2 billion (2009).

India has also acquired the Airborne Early Warning (AEW) aircraft, Hawkeye E-2D, developed by US firm Northrop Grumman.

America has been looking to sweeten defence deals with India to bag the US$12 billion jet fighter deal.

“Pentagon is working with India to put three foundational agreements in place with New Delhi that would allow American frontline technologies to be shared with the country,”

Michele Flournoy, a top Pentagon official said recently.

In its second stint in power the Congress-led Manmohan Singh Government has been unshackled from the tricky task of managing the earlier coalition for survival, especially the anti-American, Left parties.

With the exit of the Left, the role of Indian private firms in defence production should get a fillip, while American defence supplies and contracts will go up.

While much of the Congress-led government’s energies last term were utilised in tying up the Indo- US civilian nuclear deal and dealing with uncooperative communist allies that had problems with the growing strategic ties, security and defence are key focus areas this time round.

In a buyer’s market India will be able to negotiate deals from a position of strength. Offset investment requirements in local defence companies and easing of foreign direct investment requirements should boost domestic private players.

Events such as the Kargil incursion in 1999 during which the country nearly went to war with Pakistan and the November 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, have only heightened India’s quest to stockpile arms, mostly acquired from abroad.

In the decade that has followed Kargil, India’s arms purchase deal value has crossed a big US$50 billion, with every sign of such momentum being carried over the next decade and crossing US$100 billion.

Interestingly, India’s arms acquisitions have more than doubled over the last five years from 2004- 2009 (US$35 billion) compared to 1999-2004 (US$15.5 billion), as defence plans of the earlier period due to the Kargil conflict have been followed to fruition.

The defence ministry has inked over 450 arms contracts worth over US$30 billion just within the last three years.

The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), a reputed arms trade monitor, in its report for 2009, has said that India is the world’s second-largest arms buyer over the five-year period from 2005- 2009, importing 7 % of the world’s arms exports.

The top spot went to China. India could well take the number one spot as China is turning self sufficient in arms, while the former’s procurements continue to rise.

Even as America emerges as the new defence partner, others continue to sustain their high defence presence and we list some below.

Deals with Israel include 3 Phalcon AWACS for over US$1 billion (2004) and a US$2.5 billion project to jointly develop medium-range surface-to-air missile systems (2009). India and Israel have finalised deals for the Barak-8 Naval air-defence system, and the Spyder surface-airmissile system.

France has been involved in supplying and building 6 Scorpene submarines, which is a US$4.5 billion project (2005).

Russia’s stakes in India’s defence continues to be high with the US$1.5 billion Admiral Gorshkov and MiG fighter package deal (now nearly doubled due to increased costs of the aircraft carrier’s refit) and 230 Sukhoi-30MKI fighter jets for US$8.5 billion and T-90 tanks.

Britain has been involved in the 66 Hawk Advanced Jet Trainer (AJT) US$2 billion project (2004).

By Siddharth Srivastava