New Delhi: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh held a bilateral meeting with US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin in Washington on Friday and discussed issues on defence cooperation, industrial collaboration, regional security, and other international issues.
Singh highlighted various co-development and co-production opportunities in India in the areas identified in the India-US Defence Industrial Cooperation Roadmap, which was adopted last year.
Both ministers expressed happiness over the conclusion of the Security of Supplies Arrangement (SOSA) between India and the US, an official statement said here.
The SOSA signed on Thursday in Washington, DC, encourages the defence industrial ecosystems of both countries to work together, and enhances supply chain resilience.
They also welcomed the signing of the Memorandum of Agreement between India and the US regarding the deployment of liaison officers. India shall accordingly deploy the first liaison officer to the Headquarters Special Operations Command in Florida.
Both ministers appreciated the progress made in operationalising the Indo-Pacific Maritime Domain Awareness, a Quad initiative, and lauded the ongoing efforts by India to enhance maritime domain awareness for the partners in the Indian Ocean Region.
Both also welcomed the ongoing Indian participation in the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) and noted that India will deploy Indian Navy personnel to the CMF’s Combined Task Force 150 headquarters in 2025.
Singh and Austin commended the efforts of the India-US Defence Acceleration Ecosystem (INDUS-X) for establishing the Defence Innovation bridge between the two countries. They appreciated INDUS-X establishing robust networks across start-ups, industry, academia, and governments, accelerating the adoption of cutting-edge technologies and enhancing the warfighting capabilities of both sides. The upcoming INDUS X Silicon Valley Summit in September 2024 will witness announcements of several key initiatives.
The meeting at the Pentagon was preceded by a solemn wreath laying ceremony by Singh at Arlington National Cemetery. The Defence Minister and US Secretary of Defence looked forward to meeting again at the next India-US 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue.
