Russian servicemen drive S-400 missile air defence systems during the Victory Day parade, marking the 73rd anniversary of the victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two, at Red Square in Moscow, Russia May 9, 2018. REUTERS

New Delhi/Washington (Reuters) – The United States has warned India against a planned purchase of S-400 surface-to-air missiles from Russia when President Vladimir Putin visits New Delhi this week, saying such an acquisition would attract sanctions under U.S. law.

India’s military wants the missile batteries, both as a deterrent against China and to gain an edge over traditional rival, Pakistan, as they are able to track and shoot down combat aircraft, even stealth planes, at unprecedented ranges.

India and Russia will sign the missile deal, estimated at more than $5 billion, during Putin’s visit for annual summit talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi beginning on Thursday, a Kremlin aide said.

But the United States has warned countries trading with Russia’s defence and intelligence sectors they would face automatic sanctions under a sweeping legislation called Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) that President Donald Trump signed into law last August.

The law is designed to punish Putin for the 2014 annexation of Crimea from Ukraine, involvement in the Syrian civil war and meddling in the 2016 U.S. presidential election.

“We urge all of our allies and partners to forgo transactions with Russia that would trigger sanctions under the CAATSA,” a U.S. State Department representative said.

“The administration has indicated that a focus area for the implementation of CAATSA Section 231 is new or qualitative upgrades in capability – including the S-400 air and missile defence system.”

Last month, the United States imposed sanctions on China’s military for its purchase of combat fighters as well as the S-400 missile system it bought from Russia this year.

The United States is also concerned about NATO ally Turkey’s decision to buy the Russian missile system, seeing it as incompatible with the alliance systems.

Modi’s government, caught in the U.S.-Russia crossfire, hopes the Trump administration will give it a pass on the proposed arms transfer from Russia, officials in New Delhi said.

Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman told reporters India was closing in on the deal to buy the air defence system from Russia, with which it has long-standing military ties.

“Negotiation on S-400 air defence systems has been on for a long while and it is at a stage where it can be finalised,” Sitharaman said last week. “We have a big legacy of buying defence equipment from Russia.”

More than 80 percent of India’s military equipment was of Soviet origin during the days of the Cold War, but since its breakup New Delhi has diversified its weaponry.

The United States is one of its top arms suppliers, closing $15 billion worth of deals in just the last decade.

U.S. firms Lockheed Martin and Boeing lead the race to sell the Indian military hundreds of aircraft to replace its ageing Russian MiG planes.

The Modi government hopes the Trump administration will not disrupt burgeoning defence ties with the world’s biggest arms importer by levying sanctions the U.S. Congress has sought.

The Trump administration faced competing pressures from Congress pursuing a hard line on Russia, said Jeff Smith, a specialist on South Asia at the Heritage Foundation.

“The administration was critical of the CAATSA and fought hard for a national security waiver at the cabinet secretary level but was denied by Congress,” he said.

“The administration is not only trying to navigate competing geopolitical interests but relatively stringent conditions imposed by a Congress determined to tie its hands on Russia policy.”

Courtesy: Reuters

Sep 30, 2018

Press Trust of India Kolkata

The Indian Navy currently has only two minesweepers at its disposal to safeguard sea lanes and ports spread across thousands of kilometres of coastlines in the eastern and western seaboards, a top Navy officer has said.

The Indian Navy currently has only two minesweeper ships at its disposal to safeguard sea lanes and ports spread across thousands of kilometres of coastlines in the eastern and western seaboards, a top Navy officer has said.

The Navy requires 12 minesweeper ships, but at present has only two, rear admiral Rajaram Swaminathan, assistant chief of material, Indian Navy, said.

“The Navy needs these ships urgently,” Swaminathan said.

Minesweepers are small naval warships that detect and destroy underwater mines and are considered vital for keeping the critical sea lanes safe for movement of essential cargo, including crude oil.

Speaking on the sidelines of the launch of a fuel barge for the Navy on Friday, he said that Defence PSU Goa Shipyard Ltd (GSL) is in the process of collaborating with a foreign firm for manufacturing minesweepers.

The government has been looking for a foreign collaborator for its over Rs 32,000 crore project, entrusted to GSL, for procuring 12 minesweeper ships.

The basic function of these ships would be to locate, classify, sweep and neutralise all types of ground moored and drift mines.

A parliamentary standing committee on defence last year had slammed the government for delay in procurement of the minesweepers and asked it to make efforts to fill the gap in the Navy’s capability.

There are at least 12 major ports and several other minor or intermediate ports in the eastern and western seaboards.

Courtesy: HT

26 September2018

PARIS: Undeterred by the controversy over the Rafale deal, France is pitching the fighter jet as a contender for the Indian Navy’s requirement of carrier-borne combat aircraft, witha top officer saying that it’s battle proven.

Pointing to operations against ISIS using the Rafale, the French Navy feels it will be suitable for India and can be easily integrated onboard the aircraft carrier under construction at Cochin Shipyard. “We have used the aircraft carrier in the fight against ISIS and have used sophisticated armaments from the Rafale that demonstrates that it works very well,” Rear Admiral Gilles Boidevezi, in charge of foreign relations for the

French Navy, told ET.

“The Rafale can be integrated with non-French carriers.” Industry sources said several rounds of talks had taken place with Indian Navy regarding the Rafale offer for a requirement of 57 jets and that it hadn’t been impacted by the political controversy over the earlier deal for 36 planes. In fact, defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman is expected to be in Paris from October 11 for a bilateral meeting, during which she is expected to be briefed on all ongoing projects, including Scorpene submarines and progress on Rafale production.

Super Hornet Vs Rafale Marine

Beyond the 36 jets that the air force has ordered, the French side is confident about its prospects for a deal with the Indian Navy, which is trying to find new jets for the indigenous aircraft carrier under construction in Kochi. While the navy has used Russian MiG 29 K jets till now, it wants to progress to a new aircraft due to several technical problems with the fleet.

The tenders for the contract are expected to be issued shortly but it is likely to be a straight contest between the Boeing-made F/A 18 Super Hornet and the Rafale Marine. The French navy believes that it has demonstrated its ability to operate from foreign carriers. “The Rafale went to the US and was deployed on American aircraft carriers,” said Boidevezi. “The Rafale was perfectly integrated with the US carriers and has shown its capability to work with non-French platforms.”

Both the F/A 18 and Rafale Marine fighter jets have been operating from aircraft carriers but are rigged for catapult launches. This may pose problems for India as the navy uses the skijump system, which involves a runway that curves upward. Sources said that extensive tests and software analysis have been conducted by the French side on the Rafale to show that it can operate with a meaningful load from ski-jump carriers.

This data has also been shared with the Indian Navy that is currently drafting technical requirements for the new fighter competition.

Boeing, which makes the Super Hornet, has also shared this data with the Indian Navy.

Once the requirements are firmed up and permissions obtained from the ministry of defence, tenders will be issued. It is still unclear how the Indian side will categorise the purchase — as a direct foreign purchase or with an offset clause that mandates a proportion of the manufacturing will have to be domestic. The MiG 29 Ks were bought fully built from Russia as the relatively small number would have made domestic production too expensive.

Courtesy: ET

India successfully conducted an interceptor missile test off the Odisha coast Sunday night, achieving a major milestone in developing a two-layer Ballistic Missile Defence system, defence sources said.

The interceptor was launched from Abdul Kalam Island, earlier known as Wheeler Island of the Integrated Test Range (ITR), at about 8.05 pm, the sources said.

This Prithvi Defence Vehicle (PDV) mission is for engaging the targets in the exo-atmosphere region at an altitude above 50 km of the earth’s atmosphere, a Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) scientist said.

“Both the PDV interceptor and the target missile were successfully engaged,” DRDO sources said.

In an automated operation, radar-based detection and tracking system detected and tracked the enemy’s ballistic missile.

The computer network with the help of data received from radars predicted the trajectory of the incoming ballistic missile. The PDV that was kept fully ready took off once the computer system gave the command for lift-off.

The interceptor guided by high-accuracy Inertial Navigation System (INS) supported by a Redundant Micro Navigation System moved towards the estimated point of the interception, the sources said.

Once the missile crossed the atmosphere, the Heat Shield ejected and the IR Seeker dome opened to look at the target location as designated by the mission computer.

With the help of Inertial Guidance and IR Seeker the missile moved for interception.

All events were monitored in real-time by the Telemetry/Range Stations, at various other locations.

Interceptor was successfully test fired last from the same base on February 11, 2017.

Courtesy: ET

Sep 24, 2018

Press Trust of India 

Indian Navy Ace Sailor Abhilash Tomy who was injured and incapacitated day before has been tracked by the Indian Navy Reconnaissance aircraft. As seen, Boat Mast broken and hanging on the side, said Navy. (ANI/Twitter)

In its efforts to rescue Indian Navy Commander Abhilash Tomy, who currently lies injured in his sailing vessel in the south of Indian Ocean, defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman Sunday said the officer would be rescued French vessel Osiris in the next 16 hours.

Tomy, representing India in the Golden Globe Race 2018 (GGR) on an indigenously built sailing vessel ‘Thuriya’, was dismasted and suffered a back injury on Friday.

He is in the south Indian Ocean, approximately 1900 nautical miles from Perth, Australia and about 2700 nautical miles from Cape Comorin.

All out efforts are being made to rescue Tomy and the Australian Rescue Coordination Centre at Canberra is coordinating the rescue mission in conjunction with many agencies including the Australian Defence Department and the Indian Navy, the Navy said in a statement.

“Spoke to VCNS VAdm Ajit Kumar P, AVSM, VSM regarding the condition of injured navy officer @abhilashtomy. The Rescue Mission is being coordinated with the Australian Navy.The injured officer shall be picked up in the next 16 hrs by a French vessel Osiris,” the defence minister tweeted.

The Navy said its P-8I aircraft sighted the SV Thuriya at 7:50 am on Sunday.

The Indian Navy sources said the capability of the P8i has been a “humongous force multiplier” who has given it and the Australian MRCC a huge input into the state of Thuriya for planning purposes.

An Indian Naval defence attache’ in Australia is camping in regional Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC), the navy sources said.

“Continuous watch over the boat is being maintained by Indian Navy and RAAF (Royal Australian Air Force) aircraft till rescue is completed.

“Indian Naval stealth frigate, INS Satpura with a Chetak Helicopter and tanker INS Jyoti operating in the Indian Ocean have been dispatched for the rescue mission. The officer in his last text message has indicated that he is safe on the boat; however is immobile due to back injury,” the statement added.

(This story has been published from a wire agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.)

Courtesy:HT

Abhilash Tomy’s boat ‘Thuriya’ in Les Sables d’Olonne Harbour, on June 29, 2018, ahead of the solo around-the-world sailing race for the ‘Golden Globe Race’ ocean race in which sailors compete without high technology aides such as GPS or computers.(AFP)

Sep 23, 2018

The Indian Navy on Saturday dispatched two warships and an aircraft to rescue one of its finest sailors lying incapacitated on a bunk inside a small sailing vessel in one of the loneliest places in the Indian Ocean, with 14-metre high waves and 130 kmph winds battering his boat.

Commander Abhilash Tomy’s satellite phone is down, the batteries on his emergency texting unit are draining fast and the nearest warships are at least five days away.

His coordinates are known as of now but may not be for long as the external tracking unit giving position data may go flat due to a power failure.

There’s a reserve sat phone, a back-up texting unit and a handheld VHF radio in his emergency kit. But Tomy just can’t move because of severe back injuries he suffered after his indigenously built sailing vessel Thuriya was dismasted in stormy seas on Friday.

As the 39-year-old endures a sailor’s worst nightmare, the navy sent stealth frigate INS Satpura with an embarked Chetak Helicopter, tanker INS Jyoti and a P-8I aircraft to carry out the challenging rescue mission.

“The Indian Navy has put its might behind this rescue effort. And we will get Tomy,” said navy spokesperson Captain DK Sharma. Tomy, an accomplished sailor and a Kirti Chakra awardee, is representing India in the Golden Globe Race 2018 (GGR).

“He is in the south Indian Ocean, approximately 1,900 nautical miles from Perth, Australia, and 2,700 nm (approx 5020 km on ground) from Cape Comorin (Kanyakumari),” the Indian Navy said in a statement. Tomy became a national hero in 2013 when he became the first Indian to circumnavigate the globe – solo, non-stop and unassisted.

Tomy was in the third position among 11 international participants and had sailed over 10,500 nautical miles in the last 84 days since the race began on July 1.

“Extremely difficult to walk, Might need stretcher, can’t walk, thanks safe inside the boat, Unable to reach 2nd YB3 (texting unit) or anything. Sat phone down,” Tomy said in a message posted on the GGR website. Painting a grim picture of Tomy’s ordeal, the GGR said he was “as far from help as you can possibly be”.

The Australian Rescue Coordination Centre at Canberra is coordinating the rescue mission along with several agencies, including the Australian Defence Department and the Indian Navy.

The GGR website said the external tracking unit on Tomy’s boat was still providing position data to the online GGR tracker but the power link to the boat’s batteries was damaged and it could soon go flat.

“A French fisheries vessel may be headed to the scene, but may not arrive for a few days. An Australian Navy vessel may be considered for assistance, but that may be 5 days or more away. Notice has been sent to any/all ships in the area to check if they can assist the distress situation,” the GGR website said.

“Thank you for your support and concern in these trying times. Abhilash has sustained some serious back injuries, however he says he’s safe inside the boat. Indian Navy is doing their best as they always have. His tracker is working. He has activated the EPIRB (emergency position indicating radio beacon.) Help is on its way,” said a message posted from Tomy’s Twitter account.

Rear Admiral Jonathan Dallas Mead, commander, Australian Fleet, said he had dispatched a ship and it would take six days to reach Tomy’s location in the treacherous conditions. Mead, who attended National Defence College in Delhi, sent a message to his course-mates saying, “We will find your man.”

Courtesy: HT

• Abhilash Tomy was sailing as part of the iconic Golden Globe Race

• He sailed out of the Les Sables d’Olonne, France, on a Goa-built yacht Thuriya on July 1

• His vessel momentarily capsizedand his mast snapped in the remote waters of the Southern

When Indian Navy sailor Abhilash Tomy sailed out of the Les Sables d’Olonne, France, on a Goa-built yacht on July 1, he knew he was taking a risk. As the first Indian to single-handedly sail around the world without a stop in a tiny vessel, Tomy was well-versed with the ocean’s unforgiving nature. But for Tomy, his love for the ocean blue was despite its treacherous nature. While sailing as part of the iconic Golden Globe Race, a 14m-high wave rolled over and left him severely injured. His vessel, Thuriya, momentarily capsized and his mast snapped in the storm in the remote waters of the Southern Indian Ocean.

“The windwane autopilot is destroyed,” said Aquarius fiberglass shipyard managing director Ratnakar Dandekar. “I presume he has hull integrity because he has not reported any water entry. It is worrisome. We have to just hang on till someone reaches him.

” The Thuriya was built at Dandekar’s Divar-based shipyard.

Given the danger and the precarious weather conditions, race organisers are working closely with the Australian Rescue Coordination Center in Canberra. Australian authorities have issued an alert to all ships, said the race’s media co-ordinator, Barry Pickthall.

The Indian Navy has also joined in the rescue effort and has diverted the stealth frigate INS Satapura, which had been forward deployed to the Southern Indian Ocean, to help locate and rescue the commander.

The storm witnessed wind speeds of 70 knots (130kmph) and rough sea conditions of 45 feet.

According to his on-shore support team, race officials received a code red alert from Tomy on September 21 at 5:39pm that his mast had broken off and that he had a “severe back injury and was unable to move”. The joint rescue centre at Australia has alerted nearby vessels to head towards Tomy and help in locating the stricken vessel.

According to race officials, Tomy remains incapacitated on his bunk inside the boat and is using the portable Yellow Brick YB3 texting unit to maintain contact with race officials. The primary satellite phone is damaged. There is a second sat phone and the second YB3 texting unit, but he cannot reach them.

“He is safe in the vessel,” commander Dilip Dhonde, the first Indian to complete a solo circumnavigation, said. “It will take a few days for rescue vessels to reach him.”

According to Indian Navy officials, Tomy had switched on his emergency position-indicating radio beacon to help rescuers locate him.

The 39-year-old is a recipient of the Kirti Chakra and is the only invitee from Asia to participate in the prestigious race that commenced from France.

The Thuriya was in the third position after he sailed over 10,500 nautical miles in the last 84 days as part of the gruelling 30,000-mile solo circumnavigation race.

Courtesy TOI

Amid political slugfest over Rafale jet deal, the deputy chief of Indian Air Force, on Thursday afternoon, flew the fighter jet manufactured for India. Air Marshal Raghunath Nambiar flew from the front cockpit at the Istres air base in France, and the sortie lasted over an hour. This is a testbed for which Dassault, the manufacturer of Rafale, has made all the India specific software and system enhancements, according to officials privy to the development.

A six-member IAF team is already at the Dassault manufacturing unit, where Rafale jets for India are under production. Delivery schedule of 36 Rafale jets is 67 months and the first aircraft will reach IAF by mid-2019 and the rest over the next 30 months.

Last week, Air Marshal R. Nambiar made a statement that what is being alleged does not match with facts at all, and the government has saved nearly 40 per cent of money compared to previous MMRCA (Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft) deal. His remarks drew flak from opposition Congress.

India-specific enhancements will include air-to-air weapons like METEOR, a beyond-visual-range missile with ranges more than 150km; MICA-RF, a beyond-visual-range missile with ranges more than 80km, and MICA-IR, a close combat missile with ranges more than 60km. It also includes air-ground weapons like SCALP missiles with range in excess of 300km.

According to an IAF official, the induction of METEOR and SCALP missiles will provide a significant capability edge to the force over India’s adversaries on both eastern and western fronts.

The cost of the deal includes basic cost of an aircraft, infrastructure and training, India-specific enhancement accessories, and performance-based logistics. Apart from basic cost and expenditure on infrastructure and training, IAF is closely eyeing the performance-based logistics. As per the performance-based logistics agreement, aircraft manufacturer will ensure a minimum 75 per cent of the fleet will always be available for operations.

Meanwhile, the Congress launched a fresh attack on Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman after former chief of the state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) T.R. Raju claimed to have contacted Sitharaman over HAL’s capability to manufacture Rafale jets. The opposition party demanded resignation of Sitharaman accusing her of lying over HAL’s capabilities.

Later in the day, official sources came out in defence of Sitharaman by saying Raju is factually incorrect. Sources said that Raju was the member of the Contract Negotiations Committee of the ministry of defence and there were many areas of disagreement between Dassult Aviation and HAL.

“HAL, in its letter dated 11/10/2012, addressed to MoD, brought out these disagreements pertaining to the work share between them. Subsequently, in July 2014, HAL in its another communication to the ministry highlighted one major unresolved issue regarding responsibility sharing between Dassult and HAL for license manufacture of aircraft.”

“Further, the man-hours required for manufacture of various components of the aircraft in HAL was also a point of disagreement between them. There is therefore a contradiction in the claims attributed to ex-CMD of HAL,” an official explained, while adding that since the workshare between Dassault and HAL was never agreed upon, the statement claiming lower life cycle cost is completely presumptive and due to all these reasons, the proposal of 126 MMRCA could not be progressed further.

Courtesy: The Week

Officials said launch of satellites will focus on the Indian Ocean, a region that has been witnessing increasing Chinese presence.

Bengaluru: India and France have planned 8-10 satellites as part of a “constellation” for maritime surveillance, French space agency CNES chief Jean-Yves Le Gall has said.

This will be India’s largest space cooperation with any country, officials said.

They added that the launch of 8-10 maritime surveillance satellites will focus on the Indian Ocean, a region that has been witnessing increasing Chinese presence.

France will also share its expertise with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on inter-planetary missions to Mars and Venus, the Indian space agency’s two major missions, Gall said.

“We started (talks) on constellation of new satellites for maritime awareness. Of course, it will take time,” Gall told PTI in an interaction.

Asked how many satellites will be part of the project, he said, “It would be between eight-10.”

The purpose of the constellation is monitoring sea traffic management, a CNES official said, adding that it would take less than five years to launch the satellites.

In March this year, India and France unveiled a joint vision for space, resolving to strengthen cooperation between ISRO and CNES.

“ISRO and CNES would work together for design and development of joint products and techniques, including those involving Automatic Identification System, to monitor and protect assets in land and sea. In particular, both sides will pursue the study of a constellation of satellites for maritime surveillance,” the joint vision statement said.

Several crucial sea lanes of communications pass through the Indian Ocean, a region critical to the strategic interests of India and France.

While the Indian Ocean region is the prime focus for New Delhi, Paris has its territories spread across the Indian Ocean, the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic Ocean, officials said.

The robust space cooperation between India and France goes back six decades.

Last week, the two countries signed an agreement to share expertise on ISRO’s human mission programme Gaganyaan. The space agencies of the two countries have also been working on climate monitoring on the joint missions Megha-Tropiques (launched in 2011) and Saral-Altika (launched in 2013).

They are also working on the Trishna satellite for land Infrared monitoring and the Oceansat3-Argos mission. Discussing collaboration for the mission to Venus and Mars and France’s expertise on the matter, Mathieu Weiss, the managing director of CNES’ India liaison office, explained, “The eyes and scientific heart of Curiosity Rover (NASA) on Mars were developed by us. France and Russia have jointly worked for the Venus mission in the past. In both the inter-planetary missions, the French scientific community is very strong and among best in the world,” Weiss told PTI.

In a media briefing at Paris on Friday, Gall said CNES is currently working with Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and German space agency DLR on Hayabusa 2/ MASCOT, a mission to asteroid Ryugu. CNES has also scheduled Mission BepiColombo to Mercury.

Source:PTI

The Indian government has cleared the way for one of its biggest purchases from Russia — a $2.2-billion frigates deal, amid tensions with the United States over Delhi’s strengthening of defense ties with Moscow, The International Business Times reports.

The agreement, which will allow India to procure from Russia four new warships for the Navy, will be signed during a summit between President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the Capital in October, according to officials.

While there were initial discussions to involve the Indian private sector to build two of the ships domestically, the government took a decision to nominate the state-owned Goa Shipyard as it had spare capacity at hand. The Indian-made warships are expected to cost 30-50% more than the direct Russian import due to the cost of building infrastructure and transfer of technology, officials have said.

India and Russia had signed an intergovernmental agreement to proceed with the deal in October 2016, but price negotiations and technical consultations, which also involved the Indian shipyard, have delayed the final clearance, which could be one of the big takeaways from the Modi-Putin summit that is scheduled to take place in Delhi on October 5.

India already operates six of the Talwar-class frigates, but these four to be ordered will be more advanced versions. The warships are to be fitted with the Brahmos missile system and will have significant changes from the older ships as the Navy will have several Indian-made pieces of equipment onboard, including sensors and communications. They will add to India’s muscle in the Indian Ocean region.

Aside from the $2.2 billion frigates deal, the two countries previously agreed on the $5.5 billion purchase of the S-400 Triumf advanced air defense missile system, as well as a $1 billion deal for the supply of Kamov-226 helicopters.

Courtesy: Russia Business Today