Flights of Indian French Rafale planes near the Chinese border

 Flights of Indian French Rafale planes near the Chinese border

 

• War-crazy India has recently flown a test flight of new fighter jets from France near the Chinese border.
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• According to the French news agency AFP, the test flight of the Rafale planes took place in Ladakh near the border with China, where a bloody clash took place between the forces of the two countries last June in which 20 Indian soldiers were killed.
• It may be recalled that under the 2016 agreement between India and France, India is to receive 36 Rafale aircraft. The first Rafale was delivered to India last October, while 5 Rafale arrived in India on July 30 this year. Has been handed over to the India Air Force.
• Referring to the planes, Indian Defense Minister Rajnath Singh said, "This is a strong message for our opponents."
• A senior Indian Air Force official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told AFP that Raphael fighter jets had flown test flights in our operational areas, including Ladakh.
• It is to be noted that these flights of Raphael planes from India near the Chinese border are taking place at a time when there is intense tension between the two nuclear powers regarding the border areas.
• After the bloody clashes in June, a firing incident took place on the Sino-Indian border in September this year in which an Indian Army Special Forces officer from Tibet region was killed.
• The two countries' military commanders have also recently held talks to reduce tensions.
• It was not immediately clear when the Rafale flights began on the Chinese border, but an AFP photographer spotted it flying in Ladakh on Monday.
• It may be recalled that India had signed an agreement with France in 2016 for the purchase of 36 Rafale aircraft worth Rs 59,000 crore. Progress on this agreement accelerated after I was defeated by the Pakistan Air Force.
• Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while indirectly acknowledging Pakistan's superiority in the Pak-India air skirmish, had said that "the whole of India has felt the lack of Raphael. If we had a Raphael plane, the situation would be different today."