Weaponisation of Guardian drones likely to be discussed during Tillerson's visit

India is likely to rake up the issue of weaponisation of the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) Guardian with US secretary of state Rex Tillerson, who will arrive in the national capital on Tuesday evening.

The US had agreed to sell 22 Guradian drones to India during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Washington visit in June this year. The drones would significantly enhance Indian Navy's surveillance capabilities in the strategic Indian Ocean region.

This is the first time that the US has agreed to sell Guardian drones, manufactured by General Atomics, to a non NATO nation.

According to reports, 22 Guardian UAVs, priced at around $3 billion, would be more cost-effective if they were weaponised.

The weaponised version of the Guardian is called the Sea Avenger, and it comes with a top-of-the-line synthetic aperture radar and an electro-optical targeting system for firing Hellfire missiles and laser-guided bombs, an HT report said.

Earlier this year, India received 10 advanced Heron drones from Israel for $400 million, making Israel a weapons supplier competitor to the United States.

During his two-day visit, Tillerson will meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval. Bilateral relations and issues realted to terrorism are likely to to at the centre of discussions.

OneIndia News