WASHINGTON: United States President Donald Trump on Thursday (Feb 13) offered to sell state-of-the-art fighter jets to India as he and Prime Minister Narendra Modi vowed to ramp up trade, rekindling a bond that defies the new US administration's punitive approach to much of the world.
Modi, only the fourth world leader to visit the White House since Trump's return, described the fellow nationalist as a friend and told him he was adopting a take on his "Make America Great Again" slogan.
Trump said that he found a "special bond" with Modi and India and, in an uncharacteristic if ironic show of humility, complimented Modi as being a "much tougher negotiator" than he is.
Successive US administrations have seen India as a key partner with like-minded interests in the face of a rising China, and Trump announced that the new administration was ready to sell one of the top US military prizes - F-35s.
"Starting this year, we'll be increasing military sales to India by many billions of dollars," Trump told a joint news conference with Modi.
"We're also paving the way to ultimately provide India with the F-35 stealth fighters," Trump said.
India would join an elite club of countries that include NATO allies, Israel and Japan that would be allowed to buy the F-35, which can operate without detection at supersonic speeds.
India currently relies on an ageing fleet of Russian fighter jets as well as a small number of French-made Rafale aircraft.
India's arch rival and neighbour, Pakistan, however said it was "deeply concerned" about the sales.
"Such steps accentuate military imbalances in the region and undermine strategic stability. They remain unhelpful in achieving the objectives of durable peace in the region," said Shafqat Ali Khan, spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
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