The government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi has cracked down on the freedom of the press for several years, and reporters are in danger of “physical attacks, mob violence, and violent demonstrations,” according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. CPJ recently released a warning to journalists in India amid Modi’s reelection campaign.

“The evolving nature of these press-related attacks necessitates heightened attention and proactive measures to safeguard journalistic integrity and ensure the free flow of information, particularly in politically charged environments,” the organization wrote in March.

The Indian Express reported a year ago that India’s Central Bureau of Investigation arrested Raghuvanshi and accused him of espionage. The newspaper quoted a CBI spokesperson, who said the bureau had conducted multiple searches.

“We again call for the immediate release of freelance reporter Vivek Raghuvanshi following his arrest in India in May 2023,” said Cary O’Reilly, senior managing editor for emerging markets at Sightline Media Group. “We have repeatedly asked for information on his case and have heard nothing. The government of India must provide the public with information about Vivek’s case.”

“In our long relationship with Vivek, we have always found him to be a person of deep integrity, trusted by his colleagues and by his readers in the defense industry,” O’Reilly added. “One year later, Sightline has still seen no evidence to substantiate these charges.”

Sightline Media Group is an independent, for-profit U.S. media company with correspondents around the world. It is not affiliated with the U.S. government.

NEW DELHI — India has successfully conducted its first test flight of a domestically developed missile that can carry multiple warheads, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Monday.

The missile is equipped with multiple independently targetable reentry vehicles, Modi said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.

India has been developing medium- and long-range missile systems since the 1990s amid strategic competition with China.

In 2021, India successfully tested Agni-V, a nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missile with a range of 5,000 kilometers (3,107 miles) that is believed to be capable of targeting nearly all of China. Agni missiles are long-range surface-to-surface ballistic missiles.

India is also able to strike anywhere in neighboring Pakistan, its archrival with which it has fought three wars since they gained independence from British colonialists in 1947.

The RFP was issued to Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd., which designs and manufactures the 5.8-ton LCH Prachand. The request asked for 156 helicopters, split into 90 for the Indian Army and 66 for the Indian Air Force.

HAL confirmed the RFP’s release in a stock exchange filing on June 17. The deal is expected to be worth more than 450 billion rupees (U.S. $5 billion) once negotiations conclude and a contract is issued.

In response to the news, HAL shares surged 6.5% to hit a record 5,582.80 rupees.

The company did not respond to Defense News’ request for additional information by press time.

KP Sanjeev Kumar, a former Indian naval aviation test pilot, told Defense News this tender “is a significant milestone in India’s journey of making customized helicopters for its armed forces.”

The attack helicopter can take off and land at altitudes of 16,400 feet, making it ideal for operations along India’s mountainous borders with China and Pakistan.

Armaments on the LCH include Mistral air-to-air missiles; up to four 70mm FZ231 rocket pods; a nose-mounted 20mm M621 cannon; and eventually Dhruvastra air-to-ground missiles.

Although the LCH is considered an indigenous design, it was about 45% domestically manufactured during the limited-series production of 15 of the helicopters, delivered around the 2022-2023 time frame. However, HAL’s goal is to reach 55% with the 156 helicopters under the potential deal.

An important reason for the increase in indigenous content is a 2023 agreement with Safran for full technology transfer of the Shakti 1H1 engines that power it.

The LCH’s development has been protracted, its maiden flight occurring back in 2010. Sanjeev Kumar noted “product improvement is a continuous process,” and that HAL may address legacy issues related to other helicopters it makes, such as low time between the overhaul of key subassemblies.

“So long as attack helicopters remain relevant in the battlespace, the LCH will be a vital weapon in India’s arsenal,” Sanjeev Kumar added.

The Prachands are to operate alongside 28 AH-64E Apache helicopters procured from the U.S. firm Boeing.

This tender comes on the heels of an RFP for 97 Light Combat Aircraft Mk1A aircraft issued to HAL in April. As of March 31, the company’s order books stood in excess of 940 billion rupees, even before these LCA and LCH orders were logged.

Editor’s note: Vivek Raghuvanshi, a journalist and freelancer for Defense News for more than three decades, was jailed in May 2023 by India’s Central Bureau of Investigation on charges of espionage. The Indian government has released minimal information on his arrest. Sightline Media Group, which owns Defense News, has not seen any evidence to substantiate these charges and repudiates attacks on press freedom.

And though the Ukrainian Defense Industry, formerly known as Ukroboronprom, declined to explain the significant increase, it is telling that the company’s defense revenue grew from about $755 million in FY21 to nearly $1.3 billion in FY22, following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

Most recently, for FY23, the firm is reporting $2.2 billion in defense revenue.

In fact, more than three-quarters of the companies on this year’s Top 100 list saw their defense revenues rise.

This is reflective of the list’s general — although inconsistent — increase year over year. Looking at just the last five fiscal years, the total defense revenue for those ranked came to:

• FY19: $524.4 billion
• FY20: $551.2 billion
• FY21: $595 billion
• FY22: $533.9 billion
• FY23: $603.9 billion

The latest growth – by 13% – comes amid the Russia-Ukraine war; Israel’s fight with the militant group Hamas in the Gaza Strip and its clashes with the Lebanon-based militant group Hezbollah; as well as tension in the Asia-Pacific region over disputed territory and Taiwan’s independence.

In response to these events, governments around the world are spending more on defense, which in turn boosts industry earnings.

Deeper dive

U.S.-based businesses dominated the rankings with 48 listings, followed by:

• China and the United Kingdom, each with six.
• Germany and Turkey, each with five.
• Israel and South Korea, each with three.
• India, Italy, Norway and Spain, each with two.
• Australia, Canada, Finland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Poland, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Sweden and Ukraine, each with one.
• Alone, France has four listings, and the Netherlands has one. However, it would be accurate to give them each one more in this count because Airbus lists its “main office” in the former and its “headquarters” in the latter.

There are notable gaps in this year’s list. Once again, there are no Russian businesses because they did not respond to our requests for information and we could not locate reputable data sources.

Japanese companies are also not on the list. Defense News contacted the businesses, as well as government officials, several times with requests for data. The government did not publish the relevant information online by press time.

Some private firms that likely earn significant defense revenue, such as General Atomics, opt against providing data, while technology companies, including Amazon and Google, don’t offer comprehensive information on their defense revenue and declined to do so for the list.

We also chose not to include medical and pharmaceutical companies because the list is meant to focus on those organizations producing weapons systems, military capabilities and associated technologies.

For Chinese businesses, we relied on a think tank to provide the data. The China Aerospace Science and Industry Corp. did not release figures for consideration in this year’s list by press time. The state-run organization last made the rankings two years ago, where it landed in 14th place with more than $13 billion in defense revenue for FY21.

This year we were able to collect information for two Indian companies. However, our correspondent there remains jailed. It has been almost a year since the Indian government arrested Vivek Raghuvanshi, a longtime freelance journalist with Defense News, and officials have declined to provide information about his safety, legal representation and allegations.

For ranked Turkish firms, an asterisk must be applied: Some revenue figures were calculated using so-called inflation accounting methods due to the nation’s high inflation rate. We used those numbers when they were provided; otherwise the data was run in its unadapted form. More information is provided in the footnotes.

We hope this list, which one could accurately describe as part art and part science, offers a snapshot of the state of the defense industry and perhaps what’s to come.

Click here to see the Top 100, a ranking of the largest defense companies in the world.

Raghuvanshi, a journalist and freelancer to Defense News for more than three decades, was jailed in mid-May by India’s Central Bureau of Investigation on charges of espionage. The Indian government has released minimal information on his arrest.

Sightline Media Group, which owns Defense News, and the National Press Club have condemned the move and called for officials to produce more information on the allegations and his ongoing detention.

Modi’s government has received significant criticism from international groups such as Amnesty International for restricting media reporting and public protests. Human rights advocates are expected to protest Modi’s visit to Washington, D.C., this week to highlight some of those concerns.

In a briefing with reporters ahead of the visit, senior White House officials vowed that Biden would not shy away from discussing those issues in private meetings throughout the week.

But they would not detail the specific topics to be included. Asked whether Raghuvanshi’s imprisonment would be mentioned, the officials said only that “a full range of issues will be on the table.”

As part of the visit, White House officials are expected to announce a series of new defense partnerships with India, including joint production of new jet engines and new ship repair agreements between the countries. Were he not in custody, Raghuvanshi would likely have covered those issues.

Modi is expected to address a joint session of Congress on Thursday afternoon and attend a state dinner at the White House in his honor on Thursday night.

The U.S. State Department on Thursday approved a nearly $4 billion drone sale to India, a deal that emerged during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Washington last year.

Congress has received the notification for India’s pending purchase of 31 MQ-9B SkyGuardian aircraft made by General Atomics Aeronautical Systems. The notification triggers a 30-day congressional review period on Capitol Hill.

“The U.S.-India defense partnership has seen significant growth over the past decade,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said a press briefing on Wednesday, noting the sale “offers significant potential to further advance strategic technology cooperation with India and military cooperation in the region.”

The Biden administration has sought to court India as part of its efforts to counter China in the Indo-Pacific region while prying it away from Russia, New Delhi’s leading arms supplier. India also seeks to develop its own indigenous defense-industrial base. A December Congressional Research Service report noted that India is the world’s largest arms importer by value.

In addition to the drone sale, Modi’s visit to Washington in June resulted in a spate of other agreements, such as a deal between General Electric and Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. to jointly produce fighter jet engines.

Micron Technology, an American semiconductor firm, also pledged to spend upward of $2.75 billion on construction of an assembly and test facility in India. In addition, the U.S. and India kick-started negotiations for a reciprocal defense procurement arrangement to coordinate the exchange and development of military technology.

In May 2022, the two countries launched the U.S.-India initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology to enhance cooperation in artificial intelligence, quantum computing and semiconductors.

MOSCOW — India’s foreign minister met Wednesday with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who said relations between the countries are progressing even amid turbulent times.

Subrahmanyam Jaishankar’s meeting was part of a five-day visit. At the start of the meeting, Putin said he would inform the Indian diplomat about the fighting in Ukraine, on which Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has held a neutral stance.

“I know about his desire to do everything to resolve this problem through peaceful means,” Putin said.

India is increasingly important to Russia as a market for oil exports, the backbone of its economy, as Western sanctions curtail oil shipments.

“It is very important to make our trade interaction more sustainable. We need to think about how to achieve this,” Jaishankar said, according to a Kremlin transcript of the meeting’s opening.

Jaishankar also met with Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov, who said they discussed “the prospects for military-technical cooperation, including the joint production of modern types of weapons.”

India’s foreign minister praised the “all-time high” trade turnover between the two countries, which he said exceeded $50 billion in 2022.

“We expect to exceed that this year. And what is important is that this trade is more balanced, it is sustainable, and it provides for fair market access,” he said.

CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand — India’s Cabinet Committee on Security has given a green light to continue development of the Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft, India’s indigenous fifth-generation fighter jet.

The state-run Aeronautical Development Agency and Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. are leading this development effort. The committee early this month granted the project 150 billion rupees (U.S. $2 billion) to fund the twin-engine AMCA’s full-scale design and development, flight testing and certification.

Krishna Rajendra, AMCA project director at the Aeronautical Development Agency, said five prototypes are expected. He also confirmed the fighter’s maiden flight should occur before the end of 2028.

The Indian Air Force previously said it would like seven squadrons of these stealthy fighters. Although the government has not formally stated when AMCA will commence series production, Indian media are quoting a date of 2035.

K.P Sanjeev Kumar, a former Indian naval aviation test pilot and aviation commentator, told Defense News “an optimistic and realistic timeframe for final operational clearance would be 2040 or beyond.” Final operational clearance refers to an aircraft attaining its full capabilities so it is ready for service.

The Air Force’s first two AMCA squadrons will receive Mk-1 aircraft, powered by General Electric F414 engines that produce 22,000 pounds of thrust.

Later, the next five squadrons will receive the AMCA Mk-2, with bigger engines producing nearer 25,000 pounds of thrust for a supersonic cruising capability. The new engine with thrust vector control will be co-developed with a foreign partner.

Development of the AMCA commenced in 2008, and its design was finalized in 2022. Last December, it successfully passed a platform-level critical design review.

This is India’s second domestic fighter program. However, the preceding Tejas fighter’s maiden flight occurred in 2001, and the first Tejas entered an operational squadron 15 years later — suggesting AMCA’s timeline may shift. India also suffered a costly failure when it attempted to develop the Kaveri engine for the Tejas light fighter.

Sanjeev Kumar stressed the importance of the AMCA to India.

“[They are] required as of yesterday, given the woefully short numbers of squadrons with gen-four aircraft and below, plus the looming threat of growing Chinese aggression,” he said.

Correction: A previous version of this story misstated the funding amount for the AMCA’s full-scale design and development, flight testing and certification. That figure is 150 billion rupees (U.S. $2 billion).

Raghuvanshi’s arrest drew condemnation from Sightline Media Group, the publisher of Defense News and Military Times.

“We call for the immediate release of freelance reporter Vivek Raghuvanshi following his arrest in India,” said Mike Gruss, Sightline’s editor-in-chief. “Vivek has written about the Indian defense industry for Sightline publications for more than three decades and has shown that he is a journalist of integrity and the highest ethical standards.

“Vivek is deeply respected by his colleagues and by his readers in the defense industry, who know they can rely on him for accurate reporting and fairness,” Gruss continued. “Sightline leaders have not seen any evidence to substantiate these charges and repudiate attacks on press freedom.”

Sightline Media Group is an independent, for-profit U.S. media company with correspondents around the world. It is not affiliated with the U.S. government.

The Indian Express reported that India’s Central Bureau of Investigation arrested Raghuvanshi and a former commander in the Indian Navy, Ashish Pathak, on Tuesday night. The Indian Express quoted a CBI spokesperson who said the bureau had conducted multiple searches.

The National Press Club also called on Indian authorities to release Raghuvanshi.

“We were disappointed to hear of the arrest of journalist Vivek Raghuvanshi in India this week,” National Press Club President Eileen O’Reilly and National Press Club Journalism Institute President Gil Klein said in a statement. “The charges against him of working with a foreign intelligence service are completely at odds with his well-established professional profile. Vivek has a solid reputation and the respect of his colleagues.”

Defense News reporter Jen Judson was the 115th president of the National Press Club.

Raghuvanshi’s arrest comes at a time of increasing concern about the state of press freedoms in India. Amnesty International, Reporters Without Borders and the Committee to Protect Journalists were among the human rights organizations that issued a statement on World Press Freedom Day earlier this month calling on Indian authorities to stop prosecuting journalists and online commentators for criticizing government policies.

The human rights organizations cited multiple cases in recent years in which press freedoms had been suppressed in India. Those included a March 2022 incident in which airport authorities prevented a prominent female Muslim journalist, Rana Ayyub, from flying from Mumbai to London to speak at a journalism gathering. Ayyub is a critic of the Bharatiya Janata Party, a major political party in India.

The organizations also said three journalists were arrested again by Kashmir authorities in 2022 under a law that allows authorities “to arbitrarily detain people without evidence and thorough judicial review.” At the time of their re-arrests, those three journalists were out on bail on other cases the human rights organizations said were “filed against them in retaliation for their journalism work.”