Defence minister Rajnath Singh and Austin discuss growing momentum in defence ties between India and US

PTI, Mar 19, 2024, 8:16 AM IST

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday spoke over the phone with his American counterpart Lloyd Austin to discuss on a wide range of bilateral, regional and global issues amidst a ”growing momentum in major defence partnership” between India and the US.

During the call, Austin and Rajnath ”lauded progress on bilateral defence initiatives following the 5th annual US-India 2+2 ministerial dialogue in November 2023, including US support for India’s military modernisation, initiatives to drive forward the US-India roadmap for defence industrial cooperation, strengthening maritime domain awareness in the Indian Ocean Region, and India’s support for the rule of law in the Arabian Sea and adjacent waterways,” Pentagon Press Secretary Maj Gen Pat Ryder said.

Austin held the call with Singh to discuss ”growing momentum in the major defence partnership between the US and India in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific region”, he said.

The two leaders also applauded recent announcements accompanying the second India-US Defence Acceleration Ecosystem (INDUS-X) Summit in New Delhi in February.

Austin highlighted the cutting-edge defense innovation propelled by the partnership between the US Department of Defence’s Defence Innovation Unit (DIU) and the Indian Ministry of Defence’s Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX).

Austin and Singh expressed hope to have an opportunity to meet in person soon, Ryder said.