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India's Indigenous Akash Air Defence System Robs China of Sleep
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News18•07-10-2026, 06:42
India's Indigenous Akash Air Defence System Robs China of Sleep
- •India has announced the export of the indigenous Akash Air Defence Missile System to Tajikistan and Turkmenistan, expanding its presence in Central Asia.
- •Developed by DRDO, Akash is a short-range, surface-to-air missile system capable of neutralizing multiple aerial targets simultaneously.
- •The system has an operational strike range of approximately 4.5 to 25 kilometers and can target threats flying at altitudes from 100 meters to 20 kilometers.
- •India's growing defense footprint in Central Asia has unsettled Beijing, as the region has historically been under China's defense influence.
- •The cost-effectiveness, combat-tested reliability, and domestic production of the Akash system are boosting India's global defense export ambitions.
Key Questions Answered
India has announced the export of the indigenous Akash Air Defence Missile System to Tajikistan and Turkmenistan. Additionally, Armenia has previously entered into an agreement for the system.
The Akash surface-to-air missile system has an operational strike range of approximately 4.5 to 25 kilometers and can target aerial threats flying at altitudes from 100 meters to 20 kilometers.
The Akash system was developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), with Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) and Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) playing major roles in its manufacturing.
