US ready to sell advanced arms to India: Pentagon

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Thu Mar 2, 2006 05:40 PM ET

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States said on the heels of a landmark civilian nuclear cooperation pact with India on Thursday that it was prepared to sell advanced warplanes and other high-tech arms to the south Asia nation.

"Where only a few years ago, no one would have talked about the prospects for a major U.S.-India defense deal, today the prospects are promising, whether in the realm of combat aircraft, helicopters, maritime patrol aircraft or naval vessels," the U.S. Defense Department said as President George W. Bush paid a three-day visit to India.

"The next step is to turn the talk of prospective sales into reality. The United States is committed to working with India to do this," the department added in a statement released to coincide with the president's visit.

The Pentagon release did not mention any specific deals except to note that Washington was prepared to offer Lockheed Martin F-16 and Boeing F/A F-18 jet fighters to India.

In New Delhi earlier in the day, India and the United States sealed a landmark civilian nuclear cooperation pact, the centerpiece of Bush's first visit to the world's largest democracy.