California-based General Atomics, the maker of the Guardian drone sought by India, declined to comment. The Indian navy wants the unarmed surveillance drones to keep watch over the Indian Ocean. The deal would be the first such purchase by a country that is not a member of the NATO alliance. India has raised the issue of the drones with the Pentagon three times since June 2016, officials said. While the Guardian drones that India is pushing for are unarmed, the Indian military originally asked for missile-firing Predator Avenger aircraft, a request turned down by the Obama administration.

Source: New Strait Times June 22, 2017 22:52 UTC