International Business Times:
Moscow is unlikely to accede to the request by the Ministry of Defense to buy unknown numbers of S-400 Triumf air defense systems from Russia for the Indian Air force which has just decided to allow the induction of frontline women combat pilots.
Defensenews.com has reported that Russian diplomats in New Delhi said Moscow is unlikely to agree to any S-400 deal until India clarifies its position on the joint Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA) programme which has been pending since an agreement was signed 2010.
Apparently, he Indian Air Force still has not finalized how many aircraft it would order and aspects of how India and Russia would work on its production are still in the grey. The FGFA is a $10 billion project based on the Russian T-50 platform and is in the prototype stage.
Moscow, defense.com said citing a Russian diplomat, is waiting to see if the Narendra Modi government would proceed with joint development of the FGFA or limit its purchases of the aircraft.
The Indian Air Force made a request to MoD early in October to buy the S-400 system, a Defense Ministry source said. Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar is visiting Moscow in November and is expected to take up the issue of the S-400 as a government-to-government deal, defensenews.com said.
Earlier this month, Times of India had said the purchase of 12 S-400 systems was initiated by the Indian Air Force and would be discussed at the next summit of the Indian Defense Acquisition Council chaired by Parrikar…
