“The two discussed pending major US defence sales to India and the imperative of close defence industrial cooperation between the two countries,” the Pentagon readout said without providing further details.In the phone conversation on Tuesday, Singh urged Hegseth to expedite the delivery of GE F404 engines to power the Tejas Light Combat Aircraft, people familiar with the matter said.Singh also pitched for early finalisation of a proposed deal between Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) and US defence major GE Aerospace for joint production of F414 jet engines in India, they said.The delay in the supply of F404 engines by GE Aerospace has resulted in HAL missing the deadline to supply Tejas Mark 1A aircraft to the Indian Air Force.An Indian readout on Tuesday said Singh and Hegseth discussed a wide canvas of issues ranging from long-term cooperation in the defence sector, including training and military exchanges, to expanding industry collaborations.”They agreed to further build upon the momentum of this critical and mutually beneficial partnership across all its pillars such as interoperability, integration of defence industrial supply chains, logistics sharing, increased joint military exercises and cooperation with other like-minded partners,” it said.
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