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US Defense Secretary Gates pays official visit to India

20 January 2010 03:17 (UTC +04:00)

Baku. Ziya Agazade â€“ APA. US Defense Secretary Robert Gates has arrived in New Delhi, looking to forge closer military links with India.

According to APA quoting â€œPress Tvâ€, Gates met with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna, and other officials on Tuesday, which was the first day of his two-day visit.

Pundits say he made the trip to urge India to buy scores of fighter aircraft, as well as other expensive hardware, from US military contractors.

"There are also a lot of other defense acquisitions that are on the table," AP quoted Lalit Mansingh, the former Indian ambassador to the United States, as saying on Tuesday, shortly before Gates’ arrival.

India is expected to become a major customer for the US military-industrial complex over the next few years.