China, Pakistan, Iran blocked from Indian airshow

AFP,

India, which hosts South Asia's biggest airshow next week, has not invited arch-rival Pakistan, China or Iran to the biennial event, organisers said on Tuesday.

"Invitations to the airshow have not been sent to China, Pakistan and Iran but these are decided by the foreign ministry," defence production secretary R.K. Singh told a news conference in New Delhi.

Pakistan and India, who have fought three wars since their 1947 independence from the British, have no military-to-military contacts.

Trade links in recent years have improved between India and China, who fought a brief but bloody border war in 1962 but strategic ties are frosty as territorial disputes remain unresolved despite rounds of negotiations.

Singh did not comment on New Delhi's decision to block Iran from the event.

Aero India 2011, which begins on February 9, has invited a delegation from war-torn Afghanistan, Singh said, as part of India's national policy to build better ties with the country.

"We have good cooperation with Afghanistan and so we are delighted it is sending a delegation to the airshow. We want such cooperation to grow," Singh said.

About 350 official and trade delegations from 30 countries including Australia, Britain, France, Germany, Russia, Germany and the United States will participate in the five-day event, the organiser said.