DefExpo 2018: United States to Transfer Critical Defence Technology to India

Chennai, April 12: The Indo-US relations are soaring to new heights. The US on Wednesday announced that it would transfer critical defence technology to India. Speaking at a US-India Business Council seminar on the first day of DefExpo-18 at Thiruvidanthai in Chennai, US envoy to India Kenneth Juster said, “The ties between New Delhi and Washington are sending a strong signal to other countries.” He further added, “The US has designated India as a major defence partner and it is significant in many respects. The US Congress supports India on both sides of the aisle.”

The US will also conduct a tri-services exercise with India’s armed forces. This exercise will be conducted as a part of a “2+2 dialogue'. The exercise is likely to take place in May. The ‘2+2 dialogue’ was announced after the White House meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and The US President Donald Trump in June 2017. In ‘2+2 dialogue’ two representatives from each country would take part. The first edition of this dialogue would involve external affairs minister Sushma  Swaraj and defense minister Nirmala Sitharaman from India along with their American counterparts Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and Defense Secretary Jim Mattis

According to Juster, US is open for transfer of technology to India especially for developing fighter jets, this would enable India to create an environment for domestic companies to manufacture fighter aircrafts. Juster also assured that Indo-US relations are long lasting.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Apr 12, 2018 11:18 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).