INDIA. Mumbai: A roadmap for US-India Defence Industrial Cooperation for the upcoming years was finalized during a bilateral meeting held in New Delhi on Monday, June 5. The meeting brought together Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin, who arrived in India for a two-day visit on Sunday. Upon his arrival, Austin was honoured with a Tri-Service Guard of Honour.
The meeting between the two officials was characterized by warmth and cordiality. A wide range of bilateral defence cooperation matters was discussed, with a specific emphasis on identifying avenues to enhance industrial collaboration, as stated in an official statement.
During the discussions, the Defence Ministers explored strategies for establishing resilient supply chains. Both sides will actively seek opportunities for co-developing new technologies and engaging in co-production of existing and emerging systems while fostering greater collaboration between the defence start-up ecosystems of the two nations.
To provide a framework for these objectives, a roadmap for US-India Defence Industrial Cooperation was agreed upon, outlining the policy direction for the next few years, according to the statement.
The robust and multifaceted bilateral defence cooperation activities were reviewed by both parties, who also pledged to sustain the current level of engagement. Recent inaugural dialogues on Defence Artificial Intelligence and Defence Space were warmly welcomed, reflecting the shared interest in upholding peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region.
The meeting witnessed the participation of senior officials from the Defence Ministry, including Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan, Defence Secretary Giridhar Aramane, and Secretary of the Department of Defence R&D and Chairman of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), Dr Samir V Kamat.
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