Rajnath Singh, US Defence Secy laud Security of Supplies Arrangement between two countries

Washington DC [US], August 24 (ANI): Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin have expressed happiness on the conclusion of the Security of Supplies Arrangement (SOSA), which encourages the defence industrial ecosystems of both countries to work together, and enhances the supply chain resilience.

Rajnath Singh held a bilateral meeting with Lloyd Austin in the Pentagon, Washington DC on Friday.

They held wide-ranging discussions on bilateral defence cooperation, industrial collaboration, regional security and other international issues.

In his opening remarks, Rajnath Singh said that India and the US enjoy a comprehensive global strategic partnership covering almost all areas of human endeavour.

He said the bilateral relationship has seen a growing convergence of strategic interests and enhanced defence, security and industrial cooperation.

“Our leaders share an excellent rapport and are working together on several global issues apart from vast and growing bilateral relations. We have had regular high-level interactions and that includes PM Modi’s state visit to the US in June where he also addressed the joint sitting of US Congress. President Biden visited India in September 2023 to attend the G20 leaders summit. PM Modi met President Biden on the sidelines of a G7 meeting in Italy,” he said.

Rajnath Singh highlighted the various co-development and co-production opportunities in India in the areas identified in the India-US Defence Industrial Cooperation Roadmap, which was adopted last year.

“Both Ministers expressed happiness on the conclusion of the Security of Supplies Arrangement (SOSA) between India and US. The SOSA signed yesterday in Washington DC encourages the defence industrial ecosystems of both countries to work together, and enhances the supply chain resilience,” a Defence Ministry release said.

They also welcomed the signing of the Memorandum of Agreement between India and the US regarding the Deployment of Liaison Officers. India shall be accordingly deploying the first Liaison Officer to the Headquarters Special Operations Command in Florida, US.

Both Ministers appreciated the progress made in operationalising the Indo-Pacific Maritime Domain Awareness, a Quad initiative and lauded the ongoing efforts by India to enhance the Maritime Domain Awareness for the partners in the Indian Ocean Region.

They welcomed the ongoing Indian participation in the Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) and noted that India shall deploy Indian Navy personnel in CMF’s Combined Task Force 150 headquarters in 2025.

The two leaders commended the efforts of the India-US Defence Acceleration Ecosystem (INDUS-X) for establishing the Defence Innovation bridge between the two countries. They appreciated INDUS-X establishing robust networks across start-ups, industry, academia, and governments, accelerating the adoption of cutting-edge technologies and enhancing war-fighting capabilities of both sides.

The upcoming INDUS X Silicon Valley Summit in September 2024 shall witness announcements of several key initiatives, the release said.

The meeting at the Pentagon was preceded by a solemn wreath-laying ceremony by Rajnath Singh at the Arlington National Cemetery.

Rajnath Singh and Lloyd Austin said they looked forward to meeting again at the next India-US 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue.

“Excellent meeting with my dear friend @SecDef Lloyd Austin. We reviewed the existing defence cooperation activities and discussed ways to deepen it further. The signing of Security of Supply Arrangements and the agreement for positioning of Indian officers at key US commands are pathbreaking developments,” Rajnath Singh said in a post on X.

Rajnath Singh is on an official visit to the US from August 23 to 26.