US okays Javelin, Excalibur sales to India for $93mn

India is set to import Excalibur artillery munition and the Javelin antitank missile system from the US at a cost of nearly $93 million to boost the army's operational readiness, with the US State Department approving the possible foreign military sale of the weapons and ammunition to the country following New Delhi's requests.

- Rahul Singh

The Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) has delivered the required certifications notifying the Congress about the development, which comes around six months after the country launched Operation Sindoor against Pakistan in May following the Pahalgam terror strike. Excalibur ammunition was fired from US-origin M777 ultralight howitzers during the four-day military clash with Pakistan.

The Excalibur projectiles and related equipment will cost $47.1 million, and the Javelin system sale will be worth $45.7 million, the DSCA said.

The proposed Excalibur sale will improve India's capability to meet current and future threats by providing precision capability equipment, which will increase first strike accuracy in its brigades, the DSCA said in a statement issued in Washington.