Steps taken by Narendra Modi, Barack Obama key for trust in Indo-US defence deals: Boeing India

NEW DELHI: Ahead of US President Barack Obama's visit to the country, Boeing India today said that the initiatives taken by the American President and Prime Minister Narendra Modi constitute a "very important" direction for building trust for the supply of defence equipment to India.

Participating in the 'India Today Global Roundtable' here, President of Boeing India, Pratyush Kumar, opined that the continuous dialogue between the two countries as part of their Defence Trade and Technology Initiative ( DTTI) would eventually lead to a trust-based relationship.

"Trust is being built as we go and the initiatives taken by President Obama and Prime Minister Modi are very important in that regard. It is a foundation on which the next progress will be made," Kumar said.

On the 'Make in India' drive, the Boeing India President said that their company was already part of the initiative for which he, however, sought some tweaking of rules "around the edges" so as to enable manufacturing across various sectors.

Speaking on the occasion, the CEO and MD of BrahMos Corporation, Sudhir Mishra, said that 'Make in India' was not just limited to production but also involves the training of engineers.

"Make in India... is basically that the knowledge has to be made in India. That is the key," he said.

The US President is to be the Chief Guest for the Republic Day celebrations this year and will be coming to India on a three-day visit.