US, India Agree Defence Industry Cooperation Plan

The United States and India agreed on a roadmap for military-industry cooperation on Monday, as New Delhi seeks to reduce its dependence on Russian weapons amid tensions with Beijing.

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said, following his visit to the Indian capital: "We have developed an ambitious new road map for defense industrial cooperation, which would accelerate priority joint projects in the areas of development and production."

This visit is part of an Asian tour, during which Austin visited Japan and Singapore, as part of Washington's efforts to counter China's growing influence and North Korea's increasing hostility. 

New Delhi and Moscow have close ties for decades, and Russia is India's main arms supplier. However, India, which did not condemn Russia for its war against Ukraine, is currently seeking to end this dependence in the military field by expanding its sources of arms imports and increasing its national production.

Western countries, including the United States and France, are negotiating billions of dollars in deals with India, which diplomats say attaches great importance to technology transfer as part of any deal.

The agreement with Washington, for example, will facilitate the acceleration of technological cooperation and joint production, especially in air combat systems, ground mobility, submarines, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance, according to the US Department of Defense.

The Indian Ministry of Defense stated that the discussions focused on identifying ways to enhance industrial cooperation, especially with Washington, including joint development of new technologies and joint production of existing and new systems.

India's increasing security cooperation with Western countries, and its extended defense relations with Russia, from which it imports oil, have placed New Delhi in a sensitive diplomatic position.

India is seeking to develop closer ties with the United States, Japan and Australia, members of the Quad who are courting it against China.