India, Russia sign $1.5 billion deal on Gorshkov aircraft carrier

Tuesday, 20 January 2004, 20:30 IST
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NEW DELHI: India on Tuesday signed a $1.5 billion deal with Russia for refurbishing and supplying the Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier to the Indian Navy, a move that is expected to bolster India's strength in regional waters. Indian Defence Minister George Fernandes and his Russian counterpart Sergei Ivanov announced the signing of the deal, after years of protracted negotiations, at a joint news conference here. "This is a major landmark in our military-technical cooperation and a reaffirmation of our strategic relations," said Fernandes. As part of the deal, Russia will refit the Gorshkov and supply a complement of MiG-29K jets to be used with it. Ivanov noted that India and Russia had moved from a traditional buyer-seller relationship to the joint research and development of sophisticated weapons systems like the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile.
Source: IANS