Washington, December 31: The United States on Tuesday congratulated General Bipin Rawat on his appointment as India's first-ever Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) and said the post will help in "catalyzing greater" joint cooperation between the militaries of the two countries.

"Congrats to Gen. Bipin Rawat @adgpi on his appointment as #India's first-ever Chief of Defense Staff. The CDS position will help catalyze greater #USIndia "joint" cooperation between our militaries as discussed at recent 2+2, including through joint exercises and info sharing," tweeted US Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary (PDAS) Alice Wells, retweeting US Ambassador Ken Juster's tweet. General Bipin Rawat To Take Oath as Chief of Defence Staff on January 1, Receives Farewell Guard of Honour as Army Chief.

US Ambassador Ken Juster's Tweet

This is the first time that this position has been created by the Indian government appointing General Rawat as the topmost defence officer of the country who will be the main point of contact for the government to deal with issues of defence forces. General Rawat will be completing his full three-year term as the Chief of Army Staff on December 31. He will now continue to serve till March 2022 as the CDS where his main role would be to create synergy in operations and finances of the three services.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced the creation of the post of Chief of Defence Staff in his Independence Day speech on August 15 this year. The recommendation for CDS was first made after the Kargil War in 1999. It was argued that this post will create better coordination between the three services -- the Army, the Navy and the Air Force.

National Security Advisor Ajit Doval played a crucial role along with Defence Secretary Ajay Kumar to finalise the roles and responsibilities of the new office of the Chief of Defence Staff.

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