FACT CHECK: Did The US Reject India’s Latest Attempt To Buy F-35s?

A post shared on Facebook claims the U.S. rejected India’s latest attempt to buy F-35s.

Verdict: False

India has not sought to buy F-35 fighter jets. The United States has tried to woo India to purchase F-35s.

Fact Check:

Social media users are claiming that the U.S. rejected India’s latest request to buy F-35s. One user wrote, “BREAKING: United States once again rejected India’s urgent request to buy F-35 stealth fighter jets.”

This claim is false. There is no evidence that India has sought to buy F-35 fighter jets recently. No credible media outlets have reported that the U.S. rejected attempts from India.

Furthermore, the U.S. has tried to woo India to buy F-35s. For example, in February 2023, the U.S. sent F-35s to an airshow, trying to woo India away from Russia, according to Reuters. A source told Reuters that the Indian Air Force was not trying to buy F-35s at the time.

The Indian Defense Research Wing indicated that India was more interested in pursuing its own designs than buying the F-35. The F-35 and the Russian Su-57 will appear at Aero India in February 2025, according to The Tribune.

DFRAC also debunked this claim.