US Pushing India To Seal Big Armed Drone Deal During PM Modi's Visit: Report
NDTV
PM Modi and President Biden are also expected to discuss co-production of munitions and ground vehicles, like armored personnel carriers, while PM Modi is in Washington, the sources said.
Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's state visit to Washington, the Biden administration is pushing New Delhi to cut through its own red tape and advance a deal for dozens of US-made armed drones, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters.
India has long expressed interest in buying large armed drones from the United States. But bureaucratic stumbling blocks have hampered a hoped-for deal for SeaGuardian drones that could be worth $2 billion to $3 billion for years.
US negotiators are counting on PM Modi's White House visit on June 22 to break the log jam.
Since the date for PM Modi's visit was fixed, the U.S. State Department, Pentagon and White House have asked India to be able to "show" progress on the deal for as many as 30 armable MQ-9B SeaGuardian drones made by General Atomics, two sources said.
