India plans $50 billion purchase of 101 naval warships

GlobalPost
The World

India is expected to invest nearly $50 billion to strengthen its naval forces over the next 20 years, adding 101 new warships, ranging from destroyers to nuclear submarines, the Indian Express reported.

"Going by the investment value, India is expected to build sophisticated destroyers, new generation and new radar vessels, nuclear submarines, and amphibious ships," the paper quoted US naval analyst Bob Nugent as saying.

Nugent said China would likely spend $24 billion to build 113 war vessels, focusing on aircraft carriers, over the same period.

India's expenditure on warship building could account for as much as 27.8 per cent of the total investment in Asia-Pacific, the paper reported, and spending by India and China naval alone will likely surpass non-NATO and even Russian investments.

Other major naval investors in Asia-Pacific will include Australia at $14 billion, Indonesia at $7 billion, Taiwan at $16 billion, Pakistan at $2.85 billion and Singapore at $1.74 billion.

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