New Delhi: US Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III landed here earlier today to take part in the fifth annual India-US 2+2 foreign and defence ministerial dialogue to be held Friday. The dialogue is likely to focus on negotiations over transfer of jet technology for the Tejas Mk 2 fighters, a deal on the MQ-9B drones for the Indian military and the joint manufacturing of M777 howitzers and armoured personnel carriers.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, who received Austin at the Palam airport, wrote on X that he is “looking forward to fruitful deliberations during 2 Plus 2 Ministerial Dialogue and the bilateral meeting to be held tomorrow”.
Austin, upon his arrival, wrote that this was a time of “great momentum in the U.S.-India partnership”.
The India-US 2+2 dialogue will be led by Singh and External Affairs Minister Dr S. Jaishankar from the Indian side, and Austin and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken from the American side.
The dialogue, which looks at the greater strategic partnership between India and the US, will focus on emerging technologies and supply chain resilience in the defence sector.
Wheels down in India.
At a time of great momentum in the U.S.-India partnership, I look forward to productive discussions with @SecBlinken and our Indian counterparts here in New Delhi. pic.twitter.com/EFmqHnbk5B
— Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III (@SecDef) November 9, 2023
Setting the tone for what would come to be of importance in defence cooperation, the two countries during the intersessional dialogue in Washington D.C. in September reviewed the progress they made on implementing the Roadmap for US-India Defense Industrial Cooperation.
Issues that came up for discussion during the intersessional dialogue included co-production initiatives and expeditious conclusion of negotiations on a “security of supply arrangement” and reciprocal defence procurement agreements.
Avenues to further strengthen “interoperability and logistics cooperation, including through combined maritime engagements in the Indian Ocean Region, as well as expanded cooperation in the space and cyber domains” were also discussed, according to a readout by the US Department of Defence.
Regional security developments and strategic priorities across the Indo-Pacific region were also part of the agenda for the intersessional dialogue.
Donald Lu, Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs, had told a press briefing last week that Washington intends to “encourage more collaboration to produce world-class defence equipment to meet Indian defence needs and contribute to greater global security”.
He had also said that “cooperation with India to keep the Indo-Pacific free, open, prosperous, and secure” was also on the agenda for the 2+2 dialogue.
In a statement issued Wednesday on the India-US 2+2 dialogue, the Ministry of External Affairs had said that the ministers “will take the opportunity to progress the futuristic roadmap for the India-US partnership as envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Joseph Biden, in their discussions in June and September this year”.
The US designated India a “Major Defence Partner” in 2016, paving the way for the two countries to share critical military equipment and technology.
Later that same year, the two countries signed the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA), which allows the militaries of the two countries to use each other’s bases for repair and replenishment.
Further, in 2018, US and India signed COMCASA (Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement), which enabled interoperability between the two militaries and allowed India to buy high-end technology from the US.
In October 2020, India and the US sealed the BECA (Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement) agreement, which enabled the sharing of high-end military technology, logistics and geospatial maps between the two countries.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
Also Read: Origins of US-Israel ties & why this enclave has been vital to Western interests in Middle East