Guardian sale could signal US policy change
The White House approved the sale of 22 non-weaponised MQ-9B Guardian UAVs to India on 21 June, perhaps signalling a policy shift in terms of American sales of sophisticated MALE unmanned aircraft.
Although the proposed sale to India, which is worth an estimated $3 billion, is yet to receive congressional approval, such a green light is probably assured.
A spokesperson at General Atomics Aeronautical Systems (GA-ASI) told Shephard that this ‘multi-step process’ has been going on for about two years since the first application was made by the Indian government.
The spokesperson confirmed that India has directly lodged three requests
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