India has stockpiles of MP5 submachine guns manufactured by the German company Heckler & Koch. They are widely used by the National Security Guard. Photo: heckler-koch.com
In a major relaxation, Germany has granted India a license to purchase petite arms from German companies. It has also significantly simplified licensing requirements for selling military equipment to India, sources in the know said, saying this underlined the importance Germany attaches to its relationship with India.
Germany is also looking for ways to scale up defense cooperation with India, planning several military-to-military clashes over the next few months.
“In early April, Germany granted a petite arms license to India. which is a huge exception. The inquiry from India concerned spare parts and accessories for the National Security Guard,” sources said.
Germany has for some time now banned the sale of petite arms to third countries, with the exception of European Union member states, NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) countries and NATO-equivalent countries (Australia, Japan, Modern Zealand and Switzerland). This, officials said, was expressed in the assumption that the risks of misuse of petite arms and their social impacts were much higher.
Sources said the German government has also eased the process of approving defense purchases by India. “About 95% of license applications, although taking some time, were approved. Over the last few months, the licensing process has been significantly shortened and the response and approval process has been very quick.”
India has stockpiles of MP5 submachine guns manufactured by Heckler & Koch. They are widely used by the National Security Guard. Sources clarified that the license is not just for spare parts but is of a general nature and India is open to purchasing more petite arms if it wants.
A robust India is significant for Germany, which wants to support India’s armed forces in maintaining the rules-based international order and ensuring the freedom of navigation necessary for global trade, sources said, while expressing “pleasure” that the Indian military is moving away from dependence on Russia and in this towards Berlin is willing to “put the matter on the table”.
Moreover, Germany has also approved the tank engine and propulsion system bid for India’s indigenous featherlight tank project.
Earlier, there were some delays in the development of the prototype due to delays in obtaining licenses for German companies to supply engines for the proposed tank, the sources said, adding that Germany has also made an offer to India for tank engines for the indigenously developed Arjun tank and featherlight tank under development.
The Indian Air Force (IAF) is scheduled to conduct multilateral exercise Tarang Shakti in August, in which the German Air Force will join other countries such as the UK, France and Spain. It is known that Germany will deploy fighters as well as an A-400M transport aircraft. Sources said the A-400M aircraft will be showcased to the IAF, considering it is also a participant in the ongoing Medium Transport Aircraft (MTA) tender. The IAF sought global responses for MTAs with a payload of 18 to 30 tonnes and received three responses – Airbus A-400M, Lockheed Martin C-130 and Embraer C-390.
Two German Navy ships, a frigate and a tanker complementing the fleet will call at the port of Goa on October 26-29 and will take part in exercises with the Indian Navy before entering the port. Both ships cruise the oceans for seven months.
The Indian Navy’s Project 75I mega-submarine tender for six conventional submarines has made progress that is being raced by Germany and Spain. An Indian Navy team recently visited Germany to verify compliance with tender requirements, and the process is currently ongoing in Spain. As reported This Hindu Germany had previously presented an intergovernmental proposal to India for the sale of six advanced conventional submarines under the P-75I program, and a senior German delegation was in Delhi in January for discussions.
Accordingly, the sources expressed satisfaction with the assessment and stated that Germany will discuss the G-to-G proposal once the assessment is completed, while assuring that Germany’s autonomous air propulsion technology is mature and proven.
