India is trying to hasten up a deal with the United States for the supply of Predator drone aircrafts for military surveillance before U.S. President Barack Obama demits office early next year.
India's request for 22 Predator Guardian drones made in June is in an advanced stage of negotiations, news agency Reuters claimed.
"It is progressing well. The aim is to complete the main process in the next few months,” Reuters quoted a government official in New Delhi as saying.
Notably, The United States has dislodged Russia as the top arms supplier to India. New Delhi is also on the cusp of sealing a US nuclear reactor deal worth billions of dollars.
India's rush to ink the deal can be attributed to two factors. Firstly, Prime Minister Narendra Modi shares a good rapport with the American president and secondly, there is also an air of uncertainty over the next president of US.
While Democrat Hillary Clinton is seen more or less in positive light, Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump's ‘America First’ foreign policy has send mixed signals to its allies.
Trump has said US allies, such as Japan and South Korea, should pay more towards their defence. Trump has sent contradictory messages to India also.
"On the one hand, he says he values business relations with India, but then mimics Indian call centre workers, and disregards the competitiveness that a partnership with India could provide the US," said Manoj Ladwa, a London-based political strategist who served as communications director for PM Modi's 2014 campaign.
"His unpredictability is worrisome in a world that requires steady and mature statesmanship," he added.
