India-U.S Defence Partnership is Deepening

Context: The India-United States (U.S.) partnership has received a major boost with the signing of 2+2 Dialogue.

Evolving Indo-U.S. Partnership:

• Defence Cooperation:
• The Kicklighter proposals (1991): to promote exchanges and explore areas of cooperation between the three Services.
• Minute on Defence Cooperation (1995): for instituting a dialogue at the Defence Secretary level together with the setting up of a Technology Group.
• A 10-year Framework for Defence Relationship (2005): laid out an institutional mechanism for areas of cooperation including 

• Joint exercises and training for multinational operations in disaster relief and humanitarian assistance.
• Intelligence exchanges and technology transfer.
• Sharing of non-proliferation best practices which gathered momentum leading to the Civil Nuclear Deal in 2008

• Joint Declaration on Defence Cooperation (2013).
• The U.S. categorized India as “a Major Defence Partner” in 2016.
• National Defence Authorisation Act (2017): has helped India in joining the export control regimes like the Australia Group, Missile Technology Control Regime and Wassenaar Arrangement.

• Technology sharing foundational agreements:

• General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA) 2002: relating to security of each other’s military information. 
• Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA) 2016: relating to the exchange of logistics support. 
• Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement (COMCASA) in 2018: permitting encryption standards of communication systems.
• Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement (BECA) 2020: for sharing of geospatial data.

• Strategic Cooperation:

• Joint Strategic Vision for the Asia-Pacific and Indian Ocean Region in 2015: promoting the concept of Indo-Pacific.

• 2+2 dialogue in 2018: reflecting the ‘Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership’. 

• QUAD established in 2007: including Australia, India, Japan and the U.S., shows a convergence of interests.

• India’s invitation to Five Eyes group meet: A signals intelligence grouping set up in 1941 consisting of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the U.S.

Factors Responsible for the evolving partnership:

• Rising Indian economy: with an impressive annual growth rate of over 7%.

• Strong bilateral trade in goods and services: $20 billion in 2000 and exceeded $140 billion in 2018.
• Huge Indian diaspora in the U.S.: evidenced by bipartisan composition of the India Caucus in both the Senate and the Congress.
• Bipartisan Support: evolving from Jimmy Carter’s first visit in 1978 to Bill Clinton’s visit 2000 and most recently, President Trump in 2020.

Conclusion: India should shed its baggage of Non-Alignment (in the name of strategic autonomy) and enhance India’s strategic space and relationship with the U.S., which is the real symbolism seen in the recent 2+2 meet.