Editorial: India-US relations on the rise

shared interest in stabilizing the balance of power in Asia is driving the need for a strong India-US defense partnership

In the ever-changing international geopolitics, marked by China’s growing hegemony, India and the United States, two natural allies, have every reason to get closer. With a fusion of interests and shared cultural values, the two largest democracies are taking their strategic partnership to the next level. Signals from the U.S. government point to an imminent expansion of the bilateral relationship, covering several key areas. A friendly meeting between visiting US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and his Indian counterpart Rajnath Singh signaled a new level of defense sector cooperation. It sets the tone for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s state visit to Washington later this month, a key event that will highlight New Delhi’s ability to deepen ties with the United States even as it remains invested in other multilateral organizations, including strongly Actors of opposing parties and states other. For nearly two decades, the two countries have talked about transforming their defense cooperation. Dramatic changes in the Indo-Pacific region and a shared interest in stabilizing the balance of power in Asia are driving a solid defense partnership between India and the United States. It is expected that some high-level announcements related to defense and technology cooperation may be made during the Prime Minister’s visit. The two countries have now finalized a roadmap for defense industry cooperation to speed up technological cooperation and co-produce military platforms such as air combat and land systems. They agreed to negotiate supply security arrangements and reciprocal defense acquisition agreements to promote supply chain stability.

The US is India’s third largest arms supplier with a share of 11%, after Russia (45%) and France (29%). In a changing global order, the US is likely to become a larger stakeholder in India’s defense imports and contribute more to the ‘Make in India’ programme. Facilitating technology transfer and stimulating India’s indigenous production capabilities are key to strengthening India-US strategic cooperation. With China’s aggressive posture in the Indo-Pacific region, it is hoped that the two countries will work harder to remove all obstacles to the development of defense relations. Despite differences over the Ukraine war and subsequent sanctions against Russia, India and the US ticked all the bilateral boxes and reaffirmed their commitment to strengthen defense and strategic cooperation in various areas, including relative issues such as space, artificial intelligence and cyberspace. newer field. The two countries are on the same page about envisioning a free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific region and transforming the Quad into a powerful force capable of lasting impact beyond its multilateral framework. The need to achieve interdependence and take into account each other’s national interests will help strengthen this relationship.