INDIA’s FIRST FOREIGN SALE, SIGNED BRAHMOS DEAL WITH PHILIPPINES

(The Quiver) : Philippines on Friday ,January 28 signed a $375-million deal with BrahMos Aerospace Private Ltd. for the supply of shore-based anti-ship variant of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles. With this Philippine Marines will acquire three batteries of the BrahMos cruise missile. This is the first export order for the missile, which is a joint product between India and Russia.

BrahMos  has a range of 290 km and can carry a 200-kg warhead – to other Southeast Asian countries such as Vietnam and Indonesia, which have been engaged in negotiations for the weapon system for several years.

The deal of BrahMos was coceptualised in 2017,the office of Philippines President too approved its inclusion in the military’s “Horizon 2 Projects “in 2020. As reported by strong sources, this deal will be followed by an event which will be held at the Philippines ‘ department of national defense in Quezon City. Philippine defense secretary Delfin Lorenzana will be among those attending this ceremony.

Expert speculations states that the development will be a major shot in the arm for India’s efforts to become an exporter of the defence hardware ,and could pave the way for more Southeast Asian nations to acquire the missile jointly developed by India and Russia.

The BrahMos deal turned to be a game changer as India’s defence exports so far have been items such as avionics, coastal surveillance systems, spares for radars, personal protective items, and offshore patrol vessels.

This defence deal will not go down well with China, whose aggressive behaviour in the disputed South China Sea has taken relations with the Philippines to a fresh low. The Philippine Marines intend to use the BrahMos as a shore-based anti-ship missile, and the South China Sea is one of the potential areas where the system could be deployed.