Germany’s Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen, urged talks on possible sale of Eurofighter jets to India and, on a visit to New Delhi on Thursday.
The prospect came up during a discussion between Leyen and her Indian counterpart Manohar Parrikar, on submarines cooperation. “I talked of Eurofighter and [HDW] submarines in my discussions with Mr. Parrikar,” Ms. Leyen told The Hindu. “I again conveyed to the defence minister the interest of the Eurofighter nations in continuing talks, should the Indian side be interested,” she added.
PM Narendra Modi made a deal in France last month to buy 36 Rafale jets, which knocked out the possibility of buying The Eurofighter, made by Britain, Germany, Italy and Spain.
Von der Leyen, who is in New Delhi on a three-day visit, met PM Modi on Wednesday, also pitched for greater cooperation between India and Germany to fight cyber-crime, hybrid warfare, trans-national terrorism, and ‘multi-national jihad’. While addressing a talk, organised by think tank Observer Research Foundation, Leyen said, “The list will certainly be extended as you know. These are issues which don’t concern only a nation but are also global concerns.”
Responding to a question ,during a talk, on how Germany could partner India to promote Make in India, Von der Leyen said there was “high interest on both sides to create a win-win situation.”
