India pitches indigenous Akash missile system to Brazil

India has pitched its indigenous weapons systems and platforms to Brazil during key talks that were held between Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh withBrazil Vice President Geraldo Alckmin, and Defence Minister José Múcio Monteiro Filho in Delhi on Wednesday. A statement by the Indian side on the talks said, India and Brazil had "forward-looking discussions on issues pertaining to Defence Cooperation with a focus on expanding Military to Military Cooperation and Defence Industrial Collaboration".

The talks focused on Brazil's interest in the Akash missile system, an indigenous Indian medium-range surface-to-air missile (SAM) defense system designed to protect vulnerable areas, points, and assets from aerial threats such as fighter aircraft, cruise missiles, drones, and helicopters. Developed under India's Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme (IGMDP) by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), it is produced by Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) and Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL). In the past, India has exported the Akash missile system to Armenia, with the first battery delivered in November 2024.

In the past few years, India, Brazil have had talks on firming up defence ties. Brazil has been interested in secure communication systems on the battlefield and offshore patrol vessels from India. The South American country is also interested in partnering with Delhi in maintaining the Scorpene submarine, coastal surveillance system, and Garuda artillery guns.

The Indian statement on Wednesday's talks said, "the leaders reviewed the progress of ongoing defence related initiatives and identified priority areas for joint work including exploring opportunities for co-development & co-production of defence equipment".

The visit of the Brazilian vice president and defence minister is the 2nd high-level visit to India from Brazil in a few weeks' time. Earlier this month, the Brazilian NSA had visited for talks with his counterpart, NSA Ajit Doval. Next year, Brazilian President Lula da Silva is expected to visit India for a state visit.