Russia offers to India to transfer technology BMP-3 AIFV armoured infantry fighting vehicle 2112123

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Defence News - India / Russia
 
 
Friday, December 21, 2012, 01:26 PM
 
Russia offers to India to transfer technology of BMP-3 AIFV armoured infantry fighting vehicle.
Russia has offered to transfer BMP-3 combat vehicle technology to India if India cancels its project, an Indian Defense Ministry source said. This has more sense for India, as its homemade Futuristic Infantry Combat Vehicle (FICV) can be commissioned no earlier than in ten years’ time.
     

Russian-made BMP-3 armoured infantry fighting vehicle at VTTV Omsk Defence Exhibition in Russia.
     

The FICV project was approved four years ago and has seen practically no progress since that. It envisages the production of 2,600 vehicles to replace the older BMP-2 combat vehicles. The project costs about ten billion dollars, while the government will fund 80 percent of development costs.

At the present moment, India has in arsenal about 1,500 BMP-2 combat vehicles.

Indian defense forces have a large inventory of former Soviet and Russian weaponry, which they want to replace or upgrade soon. It is estimated that this market is worth more than $30 billion. And while Russia wants India to upgrade this inventory, the users — the Indian Army, Air Force and Navy — want to replace the weaponry with supplies from the U.S. and other Western nations.
     

BMP-2 armoured infantry fighting vehicle of Indian army.