India-US agreements will deepen ties, strengten bilateral relations: US-Pacific commander

The Commander of the US-Pacific Command, Admiral Philips Davidson recently acknowledged the state of affairs between India and the US, and said that it is a historic opportunity to deepen the bilateral defense ties and strengthen the 'defining partnership of the 21st century.'

He was addressing the lawmakers where he pointed that the United States strongly supports India's establishment of an information fusion center while maintaining focus on maritime domain awareness. This he suggested will enhance the maritime security in the Indian Ocean and Bay of Bengal.

The top US commander said that India and America are now also involved in information exchange, in a secure manner, while "India has substantially increased its acquisition of US defense equipment." The Admiral pointed that information sharing has enhanced after the two nations signed the Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement (COMCASA) in 2018.

'Defence sales are at all-time high'

Referring to the Apache and MH-600 missile defence system that India agreed to acquire from the US in February, he was quoted by PTI as saying "The defense sales are at an all-time high with India operating US-sourced platforms such as P-8s, C-130Js, C-17s, AH-64s, CH-47s, Precision Guided-Excalibur Munitions, and M777 howitzers."

He further mentioned that the US expects progress on information sharing, joint military-to-military cooperation and "exercises like TIGER TRIUMPH and MALABAR." The Admiral then sought an increase in quadrilateral collaboration between the four nations — India, Australia, Japan, and the United States.

Agreements India signed with the US

It must be noted that Indian Ambassador to the US Taranjit Singh Sandu had recently told PTI "India has signed the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA), Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement (COMCASA), Industrial Security Annex and the Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement (BECA) to facilitate mil-to-mil cooperation."