WASHINGTON: The discussions on the sale of 30 Predator armed drones by the US to India, the first to a non-NATO ally, at an estimated cost of USD 3 billion are at an advanced stage, multiple sources have confirmed.
The major defence deal was announced under the previous Trump administration during the visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the White House in 2017.
Thereafter, the two countries have intensified the discussions and increased the number of such drones to be sold to India from 10 to 30 -- 10 each for Navy, Air Force and Army.
Governmental sources said the Predator/MQ9B acquisition program of 30 aircraft is at an advanced stage of discussion between the Indian and US governments.
"It is a capability that operationalises the Major Defence Partner status that has been worked on for several years through the various foundational agreements and India's insertion into the MTCR. India will be the first non-NATO partner to receive this capability," the sources told PTI.
These state-of-the-art drones, which currently have no match in the defence industry, are to be manufactured by General Atomics.
The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity, denied having any knowledge of the deal being put on the backburner by India.
While the process has been slow, mainly due to the bureaucracy in the two countries, the Indian armed forces have leased two surveillance Predators from General Atomics.
These drones have emerged as a valuable surveillance asset for conducting reconnaissance of India's maritime and land borders with China and Pakistan, the sources said.
They said they have been receiving very good feedback from India in this regard.
According to governmental sources, six years of negotiations between the two governments at the highest levels have taken place.
As an exception, the US government had cleared the offering of this armed capability to the first non-NATO ally.
The defence procurement board of India's Ministry of Defence had met on this and cleared it late last year.
The next step is receiving a letter of request, another governmental source told PTI.
These drones have the ability to carry out long-range precision air strikes.
They will add to India's growing inventory of US-made military equipment that includes attack helicopters, submarine-hunting aircraft and assault rifles.
There was another good news for New Delhi as the United States has waived in-person interview requirements for many visa applicants, including students and workers, at its diplomatic missions in India through December 31 this year, a senior American diplomat has told Indian community leaders.
These applicants eligible for the waiver are students (F, M, and academic J visas), workers (H-1, H-2, H-3, and individual L visas), Culture and extraordinary ability (O, P, and Q visas).
"This is much-needed support to visa applicants. This would be very helpful to our friends and immediate family members and remove a lot of their concerns and remove inconveniences," Ajay Jain Bhutoria, South Asian Community Leader and US President Joe Biden's Advisor for Asian Americans, said after his meeting with Assistant Secretary of State for South Central Asia, Donal Lu.
Bhutoria raised the issue of visas during his meeting with Lu in Silicon Valley in the US state of California on Friday.
Lu informed that through December 31, of this year, the US Department of State is authorised to waive in-person interview requirements for certain applicants and their qualifying derivatives in various non-immigrant visa classifications.
To be eligible for the expanded interview waiver programme, applicants seeking these visa classifications must have previously been issued any category of US visa; have never been refused a US visa and have no indication of ineligibility or potential visa ineligibility.
They also need to be a resident or national of the country in which they are applying; among other, the State Department said.
The US embassy in New Delhi and its consulates in Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Mumbai will release more than 20,000 additional waiver (dropbox) appointments for Spring 2022 to allow qualified applicants to make use of the new interview waiver authority, according to a notice posted on the website of the US Embassy in New Delhi.
During the meeting, Bhutoria discussed with Lu to increase people-to people relationships between the US and India.
He stressed the importance of both the US and India working closely together in South Central Asia.
"Both India and the US are strong democracies and share democratic values and provide leadership in the Asia Pacific region," he said.
They also discussed the immense contribution made by the Indian American diaspora and their influential role in digital economic growth, startups and establishing businesses and companies, and contributing to the growth of the US economy.
Assistant Secretary Lu, Bhutoria, Indian American Congressman Ro Khanna also met at the afternoon event to discuss with Afghan community leaders, elected officials the Afghanistan refugee resettlement.
During the meeting, Lu highlighted recent immigration changes, recognising the tremendous opportunities that US work and study offer and the important contributions of international visitors to US communities, campuses, and the economy, the Department of State has streamlined visa processes for many applicants while continuing to protect national security, a media release said.