India signs Israeli radar deal

The radar will be mounted on a Russian cargo aircraft

India, Israel and Russia have signed an agreement to sell Israel's sophisticated Phalcon early-warning radar system to Delhi, Indian officials say.

Russia's co-operation is needed because the Phalcon system is fitted into the Russian-built Ilyushin-76 cargo aircraft.

Defence analysts say the $1bn Phalcon system will give India a greater edge in conventional weaponry over its regional rivals, China and Pakistan.

In August, the United States lifted its objections to the sale of the Phalcon to India - a move criticised by Pakistan.

Pakistan's Information Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed immediately called the deal "worrying" but said the country was capable of defending itself.

"We believe that such defence deals will upset the conventional military balance," he told the AP news agency.

Communications hub

The Phalcon deal was signed on Friday by India's senior defence official, Ajay Prasad, an Israeli defence ministry official, Yasi Ben Hanan, and Mikhail Denisov from Russia's State Committee for Military Technical Co-operation.

"Partners against terror" Sharon and Vajpayee meet earlier this month

Israel and India have been discussing the sale for several years and contract prices are still to be finalised.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon visited Delhi earlier this month, paving the way for the signing of the deal and marking increasingly friendly ties between the two nations.

Mr Sharon and Indian counterpart, Atal Behari Vajpayee, declared themselves partners in the "war against terrorism".

The Phalcon system is installed in the nose of the Ilyushin-76 and then acts as the hub of a communications system to spot enemy planes and missiles within a range of hundreds of miles.

The Phalcon also carries equipment that monitors, analyses and decodes enemy radio transmissions.

Israel's deputy prime minister, Yosef Lapid, last month assured India that Phalcon would provide "effective surveillance".

He said Israel bore no ill will towards Pakistan, which does not recognise Israel, but added: "Our good relations with India are to do with defence, and every country has the right to defend itself."

Analysts say the US decision not to block the sale may be a signal that it wants to encourage a strategic US-Israel-India defence axis.

However, they say Washington must maintain an awkward balancing act because the US remains dependent on Pakistan in the fight against al-Qaeda and the Taleban.