The 9th Indo-US Defence Technology and Trade initiative meeting took place on October 24th in New Delhi. Here is all you need to know about it:
1. The meeting was co-chaired by Subhash Chandra, Secretary (Defence Production) from the Ministry of Defence and Ms Ellen M. Lord, Under Secretary of Defence for Acquisition and Sustainment from the US Department of Defence.
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2. There exists various joint sub groups within this initiative focusing on air, air crafts, naval groups etc. They meet regularly separately and, on this occasion, presented their findings before the main group.
3. The two sides also signed a Statement of Intent declaring their intent to strengthen the dialogue on defence cooperation by pursuing detailed planning and making measurable progress on several projects such as Light weight small arms technologies and Air Launched Small Unmanned Aerial vehicles.
4. The Co-Chairs also expressed their satisfaction at the progress being made on developing a Standard Operating Procedure on identification and development of cooperative projects under this DTII initiative. The next 2+2 ministerial dialogue due on December 2019 will be an opportunity to finalize this SOP.
5. The two sides also encouraged private companies from both the sides to work together and cooperate on matters of mutual interest.
6. The meetings are held twice a year alternatively in India and the US. These meetings are held to bring in sustained leadership focus on the bilateral defence relationship between the two democracies and for creating opportunities for joint production and technology transfer.
It has also been announced that the Indo-US defence trade may reach US $18 billion by the year end.
The Indo-US Defence Technology and Trade initiative is one of the important pillars of Indo-US relations. There are many such joint committees between the two countries related to trade, investments, climate change etc.
In recent times, the defence ties between the two countries have significantly expanded in quantity and scope.