India’s indigenous main battle tank Arjun was on Monday praised by a top Chinese military official who said it is “very good” for Indian conditions as the PLA for the first time opened its facilities for Indian media to provide an insight into its massive modernisation.
In a sign of improved military relations, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) opened the doors of the key military institute – Academy of Armoured Forces Engineering – which trains over 6,000 cadets per year to the a team of visiting Indian journalists.
Asked for his impressions of the Arjun battle tank developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation, Senior Colonel Liu Degang, deputy commander of the Academy which keeps a close watch on the military hardware of India, said it is “very good” and suits Indian conditions.
Arjun is a third generation main battle tank developed by DRDO for the Indian Army. It is powered by a single MTU multi-fuel diesel engine and can achieve a maximum speed of 67 km/h and a cross-country speed of 40 km/h.
Liu attributed the rare interaction with the Indian media to a new found confidence in line with China’s opening politically and militarily to the outside world.
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