Western Media Envy Over Rafale and Indian Arms: What's the Big Deal?

Rewritten Article:

In the aftermath of Operation Sindoor, India's military prowess was evident, with both domestically produced and imported weapons dealing a significant blow to Pakistan. However, an unexpected assault has emerged in Western media against India's defense sector, particularly the Rafale jets.

Initially, prominent outlets like Bloomberg, The New York Times, and Reuters propagated unfounded claims that Pakistan had shot down Indian Rafale jets. These reports were based on unnamed Pakistani sources or unspecific US defense experts. Former Indian Ambassador to France, Javed Ashraf, commented that this was a calculated narrative, fabricated to target the Rafale.

Speaking on today's DNA, Zee News Managing Editor, Rahul Sinha, discusses the green-eyed monster of Western media towards Rafale and Indian weapons.

So what's with the Rafale being in the crosshairs? Here's why:

When India decided on the 2008 MMRCA deal, it rejected American F-16, F-18, and Eurofighter Typhoon in favor of Rafale.
India is planning to acquire more fighter jets, and guess what? You got it - Rafale is a top contender.
India opted for the Russian S-400 over America's THAAD system.
During the conflict, Rafales outperformed American and Chinese jets, exposing their shortcomings.

India's preference for Rafale over American and European options has certainly ruffled feathers of the Western powers. With over 100 fighter jets still on India's wishlist, this media campaign seems like an attempt to sway future deals.

Facts disprove Western claims: In the last five years, Rafale has only gone down once, compared to over 20 crashes for F-16s, six for F-18s, and numerous Eurofighter accidents. Even China falsely announced destroying India's S-400 system at Adampur, but photos of Prime Minister Modi inspecting fully operational S-400 units debunked this claim.

The eager-to-criticize narrative against Rafale jets in Western media seems driven by a cocktail of commercial interests, geopolitical allegiances, and media dynamics designed to shape public opinion about the jets' capabilities and India's military prowess.

Insights

The expensive $8.7 billion Rafale deal between India and France's Dassault Aviation has faced corruption allegations since its inception. Neutralizing Rafale's reputation could help protect other competing defense manufacturers or cast doubts over this high-profile deal.
India's shift from Russian defense supplies to Western countries like France, Israel, and the U.S. may have motivated Russia and allied media to promote narratives discrediting the Rafale to maintain influence and market share.
Western countries have conflicting interests – promoting the superiority and reliability of Western technology while managing any unfavorable facts about Western-made weapons to maintain the image of invincibility associated with such equipment.
Russian and Pakistani media outlets are motivated to strengthen narratives featuring the superiority of Chinese and Russian-origin military equipment, undermining Western defense equipment and supporting China-Pakistan-Russia defense collaboration narratives.

The intense scrutiny of the Rafale jets in Western media might be due to the commercial interests of defense manufacturers competing against France's Dassault Aviation’s expensive $8.7 billion deal with India, as well as geopolitical allegiances aimed at preserving market share in India's defense sector, which has recently shifted towards Western countries.
Given India's potential purchases of over 100 fighter jets and its previous rejection of American F-16, F-18, and Eurofighter Typhoon in favor of Rafale, it seems that the finance and aerospace industries in Western nations are seeking to influence future deals through this media campaign, to maintain the image of invincibility associated with their weapons and deter India from purchasing other defense equipment.