India clears $8 billion warships project to counter Chinese navy

Reuters ^ | 2/18/2015 | SANJEEV MIGLANI

[sukhoi-30mki]

(Reuters) - The government has cleared a $8 billion plan to build India's most advanced warships, defence sources said, just months after ordering new submarines to close the gap with the Chinese navy in the Indian Ocean.

Since taking over last year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has signalled his resolve to build a strong military after years of neglect that military planners say has left India unable to fight a two-front war against China and Pakistan.

India's navy has been rattled in recent months after Chinese submarines docked in Sri Lanka, just off its southern coast, underlining the growing reach of the Chinese navy after years of staying closer to its shores.

Modi summoned a meeting of the cabinet committee on security on Monday to approve construction of seven frigates equipped with stealth features to avoid easy detection, a defence ministry source said.

The Times of India said the government had also approved six nuclear-powered submarines for a further $8 billion. The defence source said he had no knowledge of the nuclear submarine programme, which traditionally has been kept under wraps.

The frigates in a programme called Project-17A will be built at government shipyards in Mumbai and Kolkata, in a boost for Modi's Make in India campaign to build a domestic defence industrial base and reduce dependence on expensive imports that have made India the world's biggest arms market.

[Reno89519]

You can keep saying the BS about India being an ally and all as much as you want but that doesn’t make it so. India is not our ally and will, when the timing is right, throw us under the bus. The challenge will be the 5th column of Indians in the US, like Chinese, that cannot always be trusted to be loyal to the US.

[entropy12]

You have obviously not seen how US presidents were received during their visits to India, especially JFK. No other leaders from any other country got such adulation from the masses.

The problem with India was Nehru, the first prime minister. He was obsessed with neutrality and after the British colonialism experience, Indians were naturally suspicious of all Western powers. But now there are millions of Indians who have studied and worked and lived in the US, and when they return, the words spread fast.

I am comfortable developing commerce with India. Not so comfortable with trading with China. No other large country is as deceptive as China.

[nickcarraway]

Same goes for Irish, Italians, Germans, Mexicans, Canadians, and Catholics and Jews, right? They are all a dangerous fifth column here.

Oh, and the British too. Still smarting from the Revolutionary War. Ready to make us part of the U.K at the first opportunity.