The President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, is on an official trip to India for the re-elected Narendra Modi. On the agenda are the inauguration of an Airbus factory in Vadodara, where Spanish technology military aircraft will be manufactured, the offer that the president wants to make to sell the Spanish audiovisual ‘hub’ to Bollywood, and above all, the contract to obtain the manufacturing of the six conventional submarines that the Asian country wants.
The fight, in which there are more than 4.5 billion euros on the table, is played with Germany, the only country that has presented an offer that rivals the Spanish one.
Chancellor Scholz has gone ahead, because after a meeting on Friday with the Indian Prime Minister he gave the Asian country preferential status that will accelerate the export of arms. Without concealment, the German chancellor stated during that meeting that “we want to deepen defense cooperation and unite our armies.” “We need more cooperation, not less,” he said, his delegation adding that “The ball is now in India’s court» so that the contract ends up in the hands of Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems (TKMS).
Likewise, the German government published a document this week in which it says it wants to reinforce its role as an arms exporter to India, with the double objective of strengthening German industry and distancing India from Russia.
Spain, for its part, has put on the table the S-80a conventional -non-nuclear- attack bathyscaphe with the capacity to launch long-range missiles. It is a weapon of 100% Spanish design and manufacture and of which the Navy of our country currently has four in charge, although it aspires to reach six.
War planes branded by Spain for India
Precisely, today Modi and Sánchez inaugurated an assembly plant for C-295 military aircraft of the Tata-Airbus aeronautical consortium, from where they highlighted the “excellent state” of bilateral relations, with an increasing business presence between both countries.
The factory, located in the city of Vadodara, in the state of Gujarat, is intended to improve India’s defense capabilities with the production of 40 of the 56 C-295s acquired by the Indian Air Force from the Spanish aeronautical company Airbus. The facility represents a milestone for the Asian country, since it is the first manufacturing line for this type of aircraft by the private sector.
During his speech in a joint appearance with Modi, Sánchez highlighted that the new Tata-Airbus assembly plant “not only inaugurates a cutting-edge industrial facility”, but also represents “an extraordinary project between two emblematic companies.”
The head of the Government has stated that this association between Airbus and Tata “will contribute to the progress of the Indian aerospace industry” and will facilitate the arrival of other European companies. Furthermore, he has pointed out that Tata represents «the best exponent of India’s industrial strength”, while Airbus “embodies the very essence of a united Europe.”
“For Spain, being part of the Airbus consortium means defending the values it represents, values on which the very idea of Europe, cooperation, modernity and progress is based,” indicated the President of the Government.
First plant of its kind in India
For his part, the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, has highlighted that the new plant “will not only strengthen ties between Spain and India”, but will also promote the ‘Made in India’ initiative and reflect the new industrial culture of the country.
Modi has continued to demand the new Tata-Airbus plant, stating that it will allow create thousands of jobs in India and that 18,000 aeronautical parts will be manufactured indigenously, involving small and medium-sized companies from different regions of the country.
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