Negotiations for setting Rafale price commenced

 Negotiating teams of India and France constituted to finalise the terms and conditions procurement of 36 Rafale fighters have commenced the talks, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar informed the Rajya Sabha today.
"Government of India would like to acquire 36 Rafale jets in fly-away condition as quickly as possible," Mr Parrikar said in a written reply.
India's decision to buy the aircraft off the shelf was conveyed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the French President Franois Hollande during his visit to France in April this year as the protracted contract negotiation talks under the original deal for procuring 126 fighters had failed to reach its logical conclusion.
"The two leaders agreed to conclude an Inter-Governmental Agreement for supply of the aircraft on terms that would be better than conveyed by Dassault Aviation as part of a separate process underway, the delivery would be in time-frame that would be compatible with the operational requirement of IAF; and that the aircraft and associated systems and weapons would be delivered on the same configuration as had been tested and approved by Indian Air Force, and with a longer maintenance responsibility by France," said the Defence Minister.
Talking about the requirement of fighter aircraft in IAF, he said this is periodically reviewed to ensure that the operational requirements of the Indian Air Force (IAF) are met.
"The IAF is in the process of inducting additional Su-30 MKI aircraft manufactured under licence by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) and Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), which is manufactured indigenously by HAL," he said, adding that these inductions would augment the operational strength of the IAF.

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