Top US Army Officer Praises India Defence Ties In Pitch For Free Indo-Pacific

A top US Army officer hailed the defence ties with India as he underlined the need for cooperation with allies favouring a free Indo-Pacific region. The comments came at a seminar aimed at spreading awareness over India-US defence partnership in Kolkata on Friday.

The seminar, first in a series of the Defence News Conclave Project, was attended by defence experts, retired and serving military officers and diplomats, who spoke on the strengthening the Indo-US partnership, especially after Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent US visit.

The discussions focussed on building on the growing cooperation between the two countries to tackle the threat from China in the Indo-Pacific region.

"Historic challenges require unprecedented cooperation with like-minded allies and partners who share in the vision of a free and open Indo-Pacific. In this endeavour, the US is proud to work alongside India's leadership in South Asia and the Indian Ocean, as a driving force of the Quad and other multinational fora, and as an engine for regional growth and development," said Colonel Hess, who is serving as the US Army Attache in India.

Colonel Hess said it has been a watershed year for India-US ties as the allies took important steps to enhance their strategic goals.

"Nations cannot wait until a crisis arrives to build partnerships. One cannot surge trust; one has to build it early and deepen it every day. These military cooperation efforts, combined with bilateral and multi-lateral economic, health, and climate initiatives prepare us to be ready to work together when a crisis hits," he said.

Adrian Pratt, Acting Consul General, Public Affairs Officer and Director of the American Centre, US Consulate General in Kolkata, said cooperation with India strengthens security, bolsters prosperity and enriches the society.

"An enormous range of Americans have a stake in the US-India relationship and expect further progress in achieving the full potential of US-India defence ties as it spans the scope of human endeavour, from sea to space, from security to health, and from energy to education."

"We are kicking off the first of the series of these workshops in Kolkata and we will schedule workshops in Hyderabad, Mumbai, Chennai, and finally in New Delhi that will bring in defence experts, government officials, corporate leaders, defence companies, entrepreneurs, and researchers from the US and India to interact with think-tank leaders, journalists, digital storytellers, and social media influencers across India," Pratt added.

The Defence News Conclave Project aims to create a sustained platform for free-flowing interaction on issues related to India-US defence and security partnership.

It also hopes to fight misinformation over defence deals with more information about good practices on India-US defence partnership - joint production possibilities of equipment and materials, opportunities and challenges for various sectors involved, and overall enhanced capacity to report and write on related issues.