Defence minister Rajnath Singh and his US counterpart Lloyd J Austin met at Vientiane in Laos and hailed the impressive strides in the India-US defence partnership, pivoting on increased operational coordination, information-sharing, and industrial collaboration and innovation.
“Both sides recognised the remarkable progress made under the US-India Defence Industrial Cooperation Roadmap, including ongoing collaboration to advance priority co-production arrangements for jet engines, munitions, and ground mobility systems,” the defence ministry said in a statement issued in New Delhi.
Singh and Austin held talks on the sidelines of the 11th ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting (ADMM)-Plus.
The roadmap, adopted last year, seeks to fast-track technology cooperation and co-production in critical areas including air combat and land mobility systems, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, munitions, and the undersea domain.
The two leaders last met in August in the US and held wide-ranging talks to deepen the bilateral relationship, with the dialogue putting the spotlight on a raft of issues including defence cooperation, industrial collaboration, regional security, the Indo-Pacific region and other pressing international issues.
India and the US had then signed two key agreements to bolster defence cooperation — the Security of Supply Arrangement (SOSA) to ensure the mutual supply of defence goods and services to resolve unanticipated supply chain disruptions, and a memorandum of agreement regarding the assignment of liaison officers to enhance cooperation, understanding, interoperability and sharing of information on matters of mutual interest.
“Both sides welcomed ongoing efforts to deepen the military partnership and interoperability to maintain a free and open Indo-Pacific,” the defence ministry said.
Talking about the successful Quad Summit attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in September, Singh emphasised the need for both sides to work together on the agreed deliverables, including the new regional Maritime Initiative for Training in the Indo-Pacific (MAITRI), and the launch of a Quad Indo-Pacific logistics network pilot project to support response to natural disasters more rapidly and efficiently across the vast region.
India, the US, Japan, and Australia are the Quad nations.
In August, the two ministers reviewed and appreciated the progress made in operationalising the Indo-Pacific Partnership for Maritime Domain Awareness, a Quad initiative for real-time, integrated and cost-effective maritime domain awareness in the crucial region.
Both sides affirmed support for the growing defence innovation collaboration between the two governments, businesses, and academic institutions fostered by India-US Defence Acceleration Ecosystem by providing them with more joint challenges, funding opportunities and visibility, the statement said.
They agreed to continue the momentum achieved in the last two-and-a-half years through growing convergence on strategic interests and enhanced defence cooperation, it added.
“It is always a matter of immense joy to meet my friend, Lloyd Austin. He has been a great friend to India. His contribution towards strengthening India-US defence partnership has been exemplary,” Singh wrote on X.
The latest meeting came a month after India signed a deal worth $3.5 billion with the US to acquire 31 MQ-9B drones to boost its defence preparedness, primarily with an eye on China. The agreement came after a deliberative process in New Delhi that spanned eight years, involved negotiations with two US administrations, incorporated the lease of two drones in this period, and required, at the American end, a challenging process of congressional approval.
Fifteen drones are meant for the Indian Navy, and eight each for the army and the air force.
Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) is also negotiating a deal with US firm GE Aerospace for the joint production of F414 engines in India. The two firms signed a memorandum of understanding in Washington in June 2023 to produce 99 F414 engines for India’s future LCA (light combat aircraft) Mk-2 programme.
The joint production of the engines will help the country overcome a striking technology gap, lay the foundation for indigenous development of bigger jet engines and possibly open doors to exports.