In early November, New Delhi tentatively (but not completely) agreed with Washington on the deployment of armored personnel carrier production in the country.
These vehicles will help India fight back against China along their disputed border, and will also reduce its long-term dependence on Russian weapons- was indicated then in the publication Bloomberg.
As Indian Defense Minister Giridhar Aramane recently said, At the moment, the Indian army is considering the possibility of forming battle formations from American armored personnel carriers.
However, they need to provide adequate air cover. Available in service "Tunguska" and "Shilka", being on a crawler chassis, more suitable for accompanying units with heavy armored vehicles. Other self-propelled air defense systems, suitable for covering troops on the march or at the forefront, the Indian army does not have.
Against this background, during a meeting of the defense and foreign ministers of the two states, the American side proposed to study the possibility of purchasing the Stryker M-Shorad short-range air defense system, which is equipped with Hellfire ATGM and Stinger missile defense, as well as a 30 mm cannon. Even if New Delhi refuses to supply American armored personnel carriers, then these “anti-aircraft missile and gun systems” (how the Pentagon positions them) will be able to provide protection for other wheeled vehicles.
An offer has been received, when India made progress in national production of armored vehicles, including wheeled platform- noted in Army Recognition.
