NEW DELHI, FEBRUARY 22:
The
Swedish government believes that if India selects fighter aircraft Gripen, made
by Saab Group, for its $10-billion single-engine fighter jet programme, it will
prove to be a turning point in the strategic partnership between the countries.
“Make
in India, as we understand, is a strategic approach. If India decides to select
Gripen for the Make in India programme, it will strengthen the strategic ties
between the countries,” Jan Salestrand, State Secretary in the Swedish Ministry
of Defence, told BusinessLine in an interview.
He said
the Swedish government believes Saab will be able to meet all the requirements
of the Indian Air Force that is seeking to replace its archaic Russian jets
with the latest ones.
“We are
coming to the tender on aircraft deal, and I think we can live up to that. We
are trying to understand what is meant by Make in India and how to turn it into
a reality. I think we have a good case here,” Salestrand said.
He said
he is hopeful the deal will prove to be a “breakthrough” if the Ministry of
Defence chooses Gripen over its competitors. He also said there will not be any
issue from the US on getting the deal signed if Saab wins the contract from
India.
He
added that a pact was signed between former US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter
and Swedish Defence Minister Peter Hultqvist on the equipment that are procured
from the US to build Gripen.
During
the recently concluded Aero India show, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar had
stated that the tender to procure nearly 200 fighter jets will be floated by
the year-end. Apart from Saab, US’ Lockheed Martin is also eyeing the deal with
its F-16.
Sweden
is also looking to provide the maritime variant of Gripen to the Indian Navy,
which is also looking for carrier-based warplanes having twin engines.
However, Salestrand said, even if Gripen is
not able to win the contract from India defence, ties between the countries
will continue to remain robust. “There is a range of ongoing tenders and some
are coming up. The question of aircraft or no aircraft does not really matter.
That will be run through, and we will try to compete. It will have no effect at
all on our defence cooperation that runs deep.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had assured Sweden of increased
defence cooperation between the countries during the visit of Swedish Prime
Minister Stefan Lofven.
Source :- Business Line
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