India shifts to new policy of purchases for armed forces - defense minister

NEW DELHI, March 28. /TASS/. India’s Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar has presented India’s new policy of defense purchases. The new rules of defense purchases made public on the Defense Ministry’s website on Monday morning envisage greater transparency and faster contract procedures, Parrikar said at the DEFEXPO-2016 exhibition in Goa. What is most important is the Indian government has taken a proactive stance in promoting the program Make in India and it invites manufacturers from all countries to contribute to the development of the national defense industry, he said. The chief executive officer of the state corporation Rostec, Sergey Chemezov, has said "India for many years has been Russia’s strategic partner and today we are exploring opportunities for wider cooperation in accordance with this vector." "We are open to a dialogue along many guidelines: from the traditional sphere of military-technical cooperation to civilian industries, such as electronics, biotechnologies and composite materials," he said. India is determined to develop its own defense industry in compliance with the concept Make in India. Russia is prepared to offer new large-scale projects implying the widest cooperation with Indian companies, the handover of the related technologies and the creation of joint ventures and operations manufacturing products under license," said Rosoboronexport deputy CEO Sergey Goreslavsky. "We are in talks over the possibility of building 75I-class submarines on the basis of the newest diesel-electric submarines Amur-1650. Also, we are discussing prospects for purchasing an extra batch of Project 11256 frigates and their licensed production in India," said Goreslavsky, who leads the combined delegation of the state corporation Rostech and Rosoboronexport. The Tekhmash concern intends to have discussions at the DEFEXPO-2016 exhibition with India’s Defense Ministry of the possibility of joint development and production of ammunition of a variety of calibers from 23 mm to 155 mm. This year DEFEXPO is hosting a record number of Indian companies (540) and foreign ones (490). The Russian exposition features some 800 military and dual use products. It is one of the largest. Eighteen defense industry concerns incorporating 61 manufacturers are taking part. Read more