Context:

Over the last few years, there has been incredible momentum in U.S.-India ties, driven primarily by their defense relationship. 

The Background:

• The Visit: Recently, the United States Secretary of Defence traveled to India to reinforce the major defense partnership and advance cooperation in critical domains. 
• Defence Industrial Cooperation: An agreement on a road map for defense industrial cooperation, announced as part of the U.S.-India initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET) agreement, was secured. 
• Technological Cooperation: The road map envisages boosting defense manufacturing in India through greater technological cooperation. 

Objectives of the Visit:

• Innovation & Cooperation: Technological innovation and growing military cooperation. 
• Strengthening & Collaboration: Strengthening of the bilateral defense relationship by creating a road map to promote collaboration in the defense industry. 
• Connections through co-development and co-production initiatives: Aims to expedite crucial co-development and co-production initiatives, fostering stronger connections between the defense sectors of the two countries.

Initiatives Taken: Various initiatives have been taken, not only allowing the sharing of sensitive technologies but have also proved to be effective mechanisms to prevent backsliding due to procedural difficulties or structural differences.

• Indus-X: To provide a new impetus to the defense innovation engagement between the two countries. 
• Defence Space Agency: New areas in defense space exchanges have been identified based on the cooperation between the U.S. Space Command and India’s Defence Space Agency.
• Sharing of Technology: India’s ‘Major Defence Partner’ (MDP) status along with the four foundational agreements signed with the U.S. now allow for the sharing of technology and more frequent cooperation. 

India-US Defense Cooperation:

• Two parallel tracks of dialogue began in the 1990s.
• The defense dialogue began in 1995 with the setting up of the Defence Policy Group at the level of the Defence Secretary and his Pentagon counterpart and three Steering Groups to develop exchanges between the Services.
• Bilateral Exercises: India conducts more bilateral exercises with the U.S. than with any other country like Tiger Triumph, Vajra Prahar, Yudh Abhyas, Cope India & Malabar Exercise.
• Defense Trade: Recently, the US had offered a multi-billion dollar sale of 22 Sea Guardian Unmanned Aerial Systems.
• Counter Terror: Both shared a closer cooperation.
• SoS & RDP Agreement: Recently, India and the United States have agreed to initiate negotiations for a ‘Security of Supply’ (SoS) arrangement and a ‘Reciprocal Defence Procurement’ (RDP) agreement which aim to promote long-term supply chain stability and enhance security and defense cooperation.
  • SoS Agreement: A bilateral or multilateral agreement aimed at ensuring the availability and stability of critical supplies, particularly in the field of defense and security.
  • RDP Agreement: A bilateral agreement in the field of defense procurement, which is designed to facilitate reciprocal procurement of defense items and promote cooperation in research, development, and production of defense equipment.

Concerns regarding India-US Defense Cooperation:

• Russia Factor: The US used the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA), according to which, sanctions could be imposed on any country indulging in procurement of weapons from a foreign so-called “rogue” government.
  • It was introduced to predominantly target Iran and Russia.
  • India’s decision to buy S-400 Triumf long-range missiles from Russia has emerged as a major cause of irritation in India-US relations.

The Indo-Pacific Imperative:

• Engagement: The U.S.-India defense partnership is the cornerstone of their engagement in the Indo-Pacific. 
• Global Concerning Issues: The Indo-Pacific including coercive actions by the People’s Republic of China; the aggressive actions of Russia towards Ukraine aimed at forcibly redrawing borders and undermining national sovereignty; transnational issues such as terrorism and climate change. 
• iCET Agreement: The relationships are likely to be supplemented by linking defense start-ups from both countries through an ‘innovation bridge’ that was announced in the iCET agreement.
• Jump Start: The recent steps promise to jump start the The Defence Technology and Trade Initiative (DTTI) by providing specific momentum to co-production and co-development in the defense sector. 

Conclusion:

• The bilateral visit would see a few big ticket announcements, especially in the area of defense cooperation. 
• The sky, it seems, is the limit in the emerging defense partnership between two of the world’s leading democracies. 
• India has to be clear with the US for its non-aligned position to resolve concerns of sanctions issues with relations with Russia.

News Source: The Hindu