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During a four-day visit to Tokyo by Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh, starting yesterday, the two sides are set to firm up plans for Delhi to purchase the US-2, a domestically-developed aircraft used by Japan’s armed forces.
The sale, reported by the Nikkei business daily, would be the first of a finished product made by Japan’s homegrown defence industry since rules were imposed restricting the export of weapons systems and other equipment.
It would also mark a strengthening of the alliance between Japan and India, which both see rising China as a threat to regional stability.
Experts say the aircraft must be classed as for civilian use if it is to comply with Japan’s 1967 self-imposed ban on arms exports, part of the post-World War II anti-militarist drive.
The US-2, which was developed by ShinMaywa Industries and has been sold to the Japanese navy at a price of roughly US$99 million, has a range of 4 700 kilometres and can land in seas with waves of up to three metres.
“If the US-2 is exported to India for civilian use, that would be the first case of exports of Japanese-developed weaponry used by the defence ministry for civilian use,” a trade ministry official in charge of arms sales said. — AFP.
Online Reporter