New Delhi: The geopolitical wrangling and heartburn over India's mother of all defence deals, the lucrative $20 billion MMRCA (medium multi-role combat aircraft) project, is still not over. First, it was the Americans, then the Europeans and now, the Russians.
Even as India and France inch forward to stitch up the contract for acquisition of 126 Rafale fighters for the IAF, Russian ambassador Alexander Kadakin last week publicly questioned New Delhi's decision to go in for the French jets. The Rafales can be "swatted like mosquitoes on an August night" by the Russian-origin Sukhoi-27s, now being inducted by China, said Kadakin.
On Wednesday, it was French ambassador Francois Richier's turn to hit back. He criticized "grumpy competitors", who had lost out in the MMRCA competition after extensive technical and commercial evaluation, for using "bad language" against the French fighter's combat capabilities. Rafale's "long-range strike capabilities" have been amply demonstrated in conflicts ranging from Afghanistan to Iraq, said Richier.
30/10/14 Rajat Pandit/Economic Times
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Even as India and France inch forward to stitch up the contract for acquisition of 126 Rafale fighters for the IAF, Russian ambassador Alexander Kadakin last week publicly questioned New Delhi's decision to go in for the French jets. The Rafales can be "swatted like mosquitoes on an August night" by the Russian-origin Sukhoi-27s, now being inducted by China, said Kadakin.
On Wednesday, it was French ambassador Francois Richier's turn to hit back. He criticized "grumpy competitors", who had lost out in the MMRCA competition after extensive technical and commercial evaluation, for using "bad language" against the French fighter's combat capabilities. Rafale's "long-range strike capabilities" have been amply demonstrated in conflicts ranging from Afghanistan to Iraq, said Richier.
30/10/14 Rajat Pandit/Economic Times
