Blitz Bureau
INDIA’S Defence Minister Rajnath Singh met the US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin in the Pentagon, Washington DC on August 23 and held wide-ranging discussions on bilateral defence cooperation, industrial collaboration, regional security and other international issues.
“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,” Singh said in a post on X.
India and the US signed two key agreements to further boost the comprehensive global strategic partnership between the two countries. The agreements pertain to the Security of Supplies Arrangement (SOSA) and a Memorandum of Agreement regarding the Assignment of Liaison Officers.
Four-day US visit
“Two important documents have been signed in Washington DC as Raksha Mantri Shri @rajnathsingh’s visit to the United States begins. Senior defence officials from both sides concluded the Security of Supplies Arrangement (SOSA), and Memorandum of Agreement regarding the Assignment of Liaison Officers,” the Ministry of Defence (MoD) shared in a post on X on August 23.
Singh is on a four-day visit to the United Stagtes.
In a statement, the Defence Ministry said both the 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.
