BEIRUT, LEBANON (10:30 P.M.) – The Indian government approved a deal to buy 33 Russian combat aircraft and modernize 59 others, to boost its air power in light of the tension on the border with China.

“The purchase of 21 MiG-29s and 12 Sukhoi-30 fighters will cost 181.48 billion rupees ($2.43 billion),” the Indian Ministry of Defense said.

They added, “The purchase of the aircraft will be in addition to the modernization of 59 other MiG-29s, an attempt to meet the Air Force’s need to increase the squadrons of its combat aircraft.”

More than half of the Indian military hardware is of Russian origin, but in the past 10 years, New Delhi has turned to the United States and Israel to purchase additional weapons.

Tension between India and China hit its highest level in years, following a clash last month in a disputed section of the border in the western Himalayas, which killed 20 Indian soldiers.

Share this article:
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  • 1
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
    1
    Share
ALSO READ  Turkish F-16 shot down Armenian Su-25 over Armenia: Yerevan

RELATED ARTICLESMORE FROM AUTHOR

Notice: All comments represent the view of the commenter and not necessarily the views of AMN.

All comments that are not spam or wholly inappropriate are approved, we do not sort out opinions or points of view that are different from ours.

Be Civil

This is a Civilized Place for Public Discussion

Please treat this discussion with the same respect you would a public park. We, too, are a shared community resource — a place to share skills, knowledge and interests through ongoing conversation.

These are not hard and fast rules, merely guidelines to aid the human judgment of our community and keep this a clean and well-lighted place for civilized public discourse.

Make it better

Improve the Discussion

Help us make this a great place for discussion by always working to improve the discussion in some way, however small. If you are not sure your post adds to the conversation, think over what you want to say and try again later.

The topics discussed here matter to us, and we want you to act as if they matter to you, too. Be respectful of the topics and the people discussing them, even if you disagree with some of what is being said.

Now the hard part!

Be Agreeable, Even When You Disagree

You may wish to respond to something by disagreeing with it. That’s fine. But remember to criticize ideas, not people. Please avoid:

  • Name-calling
  • Ad hominem attacks
  • Responding to a post’s tone instead of its actual content
  • Knee-jerk contradiction

Instead, provide reasoned counter-arguments that improve the conversation.