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Allowing foreign investment to private defence suppliers will benefit US, India: PM | To involve Indian and American industries in enhancing investment flows between both countries, the Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh on Monday said that Indian private sector defence suppliers are now allowed to have up to 26 percent foreign investment, opening a new avenue for Indo-US collaboration.
Addressing the US-India Business Council (USIBC), the premier business advocacy
organization representing America's top companies investing in India, joined by
global Indian companies promoting economic reforms with an aim to deepen and
strengthen
bilateral trade and commercial ties, Dr. Singh: "We have an expanding area of
defence collaboration, including the possibility of procurement of defence equipment
from the US. Our domestic private sector defence suppliers are now allowed to
have up to 26 percent foreign investment, opening a new avenue for Indo-US
collaboration."
"Our defence and strategic dialogues have added important dimensions to our ties.
Maritime security, including countering piracy and protecting sea-lanes of communication
in the Indian Ocean and beyond, is another area where we should expand cooperation,"
he said. Outlining the Obama administration's "New Strategic Dialogue", U.S. Under
Secretary of State for Political Affairs William J. Burns said that greater Indo-U.S.
cooperation can be expected on counter-terrorism, the reconstruction process in
Afghanistan, non-proliferation, and the defence sector during Dr. Singh's four-day
visit to Washington. In a sign of increasing Indo-US military ties, India has
started negotiating the purchase of heavy lift transport aircraft C-17 Globemaster
from the U.S. in a deal worth approximately 1.7 billion dollars. The Indian Air
Force has also placed orders for six C-130J aircraft from the U.S., the deliveries
of which will commence in 2011. India is also in the process of finalising the
order for 126 multi-role combat aircraft and looking to procure 197 light utility
helicopters. According to Ashley J. Tellis of the Carnegie Endowment for International
Peace,U.S.-India defence cooperation is not only going to deepen, but is also
going to broaden much more than seen historically. Tellis has that there are three
areas where he thinks bilateral defence cooperation will prosper: 1) Military-to-military
cooperation: There is already a very robust pattern of engagement and this will
only increase in time. 2) Defence trade: India has slowly started to look to the
United States as a supplier of high-end defense equipment. So far, the deals have
been modest, but there are very big deals that are on the anvil, which will be
concluded within the next decade, and. 3) Defence industrial cooperation: American
industry is going to look to India to invest. It's going to be a destination for
investment. There is going to be a great deal of co-production and in some cases
even co-development over the longer term. Telllis sees the field of defence as
being extremely ripe for "very, very deep cooperation" between the two countries.
Defence cooperation between both countries is overseen and reviewed by the India-US
Defence Policy Group (DPG). The Joint Technical Group (JTG) coordinates the transfer
of technology and explores the areas of scientific interaction between U.S. and
India. Executive Steering Group (ESG) meetings are held annually between the Indian
Army, Navy and Air Force commanders and their counterparts in the US forces. |
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