Defence Minister Rajnath Singh & US Secretary of Defense Mr Lloyd Austin hold bilateral talks in Washington DC

New Delhi. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh held a bilateral meeting with the US Secretary of Defense Mr Lloyd Austin in Pentagon, Washington DC on August 23. They held wide-ranging discussions on bilateral defence cooperation, industrial collaboration, regional security and other international issues.

Mr. Rajnath Singh highlighted the 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 on the conclusion of the Security of Supplies Arrangement (SOSA) between India and US. The SOSA signed yesterday in Washington DC encourages the defence industrial ecosystems of both countries to work together, and enhances the supply chain resilience. They also welcomed the signing of the Memorandum of Agreement between India and US regarding the Deployment of Liaison Officers. India shall be accordingly deploying the first Liaison Officer to the Headquarters Special Operations Command in Florida, US.

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 the Maritime Domain Awareness for the partners in the Indian Ocean Region. They welcomed the ongoing Indian participation in the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) and noted that India shall deploy Indian Navy personnel in CMF’s Combined Task Force 150 headquarters in 2025.

Defence Minister and Secretary 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 war-fighting capabilities of both sides. The upcoming INDUS X Silicon Valley Summit in September 2024 shall witness announcements of several key initiatives.

The meeting at Pentagon was preceded by a solemn wreath laying ceremony by Mr. Rajnath Singh at the Arlington National Cemetery. Defence Minister and US Secretary of Defense looked forward to meeting again at the next India-US 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue.