The United States and India are moving to strengthen their defense partnership, officials said on Tuesday, the latest sign of cooperation between the two countries in the face of an increasingly convinced China.
The plans emerged after two days of meetings in Washington between government officials and business representatives from both countries, and include greater collaboration in sectors linked to the armed forces and operational coordination in the Indo-Pacific region.
The main one is cooperation in the development of jet engines and technologies for military ammunition, according to a White House release. The statement also cited that the US government intends to expedite the review of an order by US General Electric to manufacture jet engines in India for use in aircraft in the country.
Operationally, the US and Indian militaries intend to develop maritime security and intelligence, as well as reconnaissance and surveillance capabilities, as the statement said.
US Assistant Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks told Indian National Security Advisor Ajit Doval that “building alliances and partnerships is a top priority” for the Pentagon in what she said was “the increasingly competitive strategic environment region,” according to a statement from the Department of Defense.
Hicks said developing partnerships was a key objective of the US Defense Strategy to 2022, which defines China as a “growing threat across multiple domains”.
As the US saw China build up its military forces in areas close to Taiwan and America’s main ally Japan, soldiers from India clashed with Chinese troops on the so-called Line of Actual Control, the ill-defined border between the two nations in the Himalayas.
technological ties
The US and India, along with Japan and Australia, are members of the Quad, or Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, an informal security-focused group formed in the early 2000s. more active in recent years as part of efforts to counter China’s territorial reach and claims in the Indo-Pacific region.
When US President Joe Biden and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met at the Quad summit in Tokyo in May 2022, they announced the India-US Initiative for Critical and Emerging Technologies (iCET). ).
This week’s meetings were the first under this configuration, and brought together dozens of government representatives, CEOs of companies in the sector and academics from both countries.
In addition to defense technologies, Washington and New Delhi intend to work to “expand international collaboration in a variety of areas, including artificial intelligence, quantum technology and advanced wireless technology,” the White House document said.
An important part of the meetings was an agreement to develop the semiconductor industry in India, which has the skilled workforce to become a major player in manufacturing these components.
In addition, the two countries have pledged to help develop the next generation in telecommunications in India, including advanced 5G and 6G mobile phone technologies.
The US and India also agreed to improve cooperation in space, including helping India develop astronauts, its commercial space sector and its role in planetary defense.
Source: CNN Brasil
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