New Delhi:
India is expected to bring up bribery allegations in the 4000 crore deal for VVIP choppers made by UK-based company AgustaWestland with Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron, who is meeting Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in Delhi today. Mr Cameron has vouched for the quality of helicopters that AgustaWestland makes and says he'd like to see the scandal separated from the machine.
AgustaWestland is based in Britain but is owned by Italian defence giant Finmeccanica. The helicopters are manufactured at Yeovil in Somerset, England. Mr Cameron told NDTV yesterday that he wants to safeguard AgustaWestland's future. "My concern is that AgustaWestland is a company that makes good helicopters...they continue to have a good name. They work very hard and produce a great product and I want to make sure their futures are safe."
He also said that this was "essentially an issue between the Indian authorities and Italy," but that UK will cooperate fully if India seeks help in investigations. "India has not approached us yet, but we will cooperate in full. We have very strong anti-bribery law in the UK. It is the toughest anywhere in the world," the British PM said.
India has warned that it is likely to cancel the helicopter deal with AgustaWestland. The CBI is investigating whether nearly 350 crores were paid in kickbacks to Indians via a complex matrix of middlemen and companies based in Chandigarh, Mauritius, the UK and Tunisia.
India's enquiry comes after Italy arrested former Finmeccanica CEO Giuseppe Orsi for paying bribes at home and abroad. A large part of the prosecutors' report there focused on the alleged bribes paid in India to bag the VVIP helicopter contract in 2010.
Mr Cameron's three-day visit is designed to underpin Indo-British trade links. He's leading a huge trade delegation to India, the largest ever by a British PM abroad. Key on his agenda is a hard-sell of the Eurofighter jet, which is partly built in Britain, if India decides to review a multi-billion dollar deal to buy 126 French-made Rafale fighters. New Delhi rejected the Eurofighter last year.
Mr Cameron will also ask for greater access to Indian markets, particularly in banking and insurance. He has already announced a same-day visa service for Indian businessmen and said there would be no limit on the number of Indian students studying in the UK.
AgustaWestland is based in Britain but is owned by Italian defence giant Finmeccanica. The helicopters are manufactured at Yeovil in Somerset, England. Mr Cameron told NDTV yesterday that he wants to safeguard AgustaWestland's future. "My concern is that AgustaWestland is a company that makes good helicopters...they continue to have a good name. They work very hard and produce a great product and I want to make sure their futures are safe."
He also said that this was "essentially an issue between the Indian authorities and Italy," but that UK will cooperate fully if India seeks help in investigations. "India has not approached us yet, but we will cooperate in full. We have very strong anti-bribery law in the UK. It is the toughest anywhere in the world," the British PM said.
India has warned that it is likely to cancel the helicopter deal with AgustaWestland. The CBI is investigating whether nearly 350 crores were paid in kickbacks to Indians via a complex matrix of middlemen and companies based in Chandigarh, Mauritius, the UK and Tunisia.
India's enquiry comes after Italy arrested former Finmeccanica CEO Giuseppe Orsi for paying bribes at home and abroad. A large part of the prosecutors' report there focused on the alleged bribes paid in India to bag the VVIP helicopter contract in 2010.
Mr Cameron's three-day visit is designed to underpin Indo-British trade links. He's leading a huge trade delegation to India, the largest ever by a British PM abroad. Key on his agenda is a hard-sell of the Eurofighter jet, which is partly built in Britain, if India decides to review a multi-billion dollar deal to buy 126 French-made Rafale fighters. New Delhi rejected the Eurofighter last year.
Mr Cameron will also ask for greater access to Indian markets, particularly in banking and insurance. He has already announced a same-day visa service for Indian businessmen and said there would be no limit on the number of Indian students studying in the UK.
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