MUMBAI, Oct 9 — The United Kingdom (UK) has signed a £350 million (RM1.97 billion) contract to supply the Indian army with UK-manufactured lightweight missiles, as part of a deepening weapons and defence partnership between the two countries.
The announcement came as Prime Minister Keir Starmer was visiting his Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi, in Mumbai on Thursday, where the pair hailed the potential of the commercial links enabled by their months-old trade deal.
In its statement on the defence deal, the UK government said the new contract for Lightweight Multirole Missiles, made by Thales in Northern Ireland, would secure 700 jobs at a factory that currently produces the same weapons for Ukraine.
"The deal paves the way for a broader complex weapons partnership between the UK and India, currently under negotiation between the two governments," it said.
Over the last 12 months, Starmer has thrown his weight behind the UK's defence sector to drive higher economic growth, pledging to increase spending in line with Nato targets, as well as focusing on winning export contracts, such as a recent US$13.5 billion (RM56.92 billion) frigate contract with Norway.
On Thursday, the UK also said it had reached a new milestone with India on a tie-up for electric-powered engines for naval ships, as both countries signed the next phase of a deal worth an initial £250 million (RM1.41 billion).
