Summary
- “The United States sees India not merely as a key partner, but as an essential one in ensuring a long-term favorable balance of power in Asia."
“The United States sees India not merely as a key partner, but as an essential one in ensuring a long-term favorable balance of power in Asia,” said Under Secretary of War for Policy Elbridge Colby.
Speaking to senior Indian officials at a conference at India’s Ananta Centre on March 24, Under Secretary Colby noted, “the United States views India with deep respect—as a republic of continental scale, as a nation with a proud strategic tradition, and as a country whose decisions will profoundly shape the future of the Indo-Pacific and the international landscape more broadly. Our two countries of course differ in history, geography, and perspective in important ways. Yet we share something fundamental: a conviction that the future of Asia should be determined by sovereign nations able to chart their own course.”
Under Secretary Colby said that the Indo-Pacific has become the central theater of international politics, economics, and security. “Indian but also American interests and long-term prosperity will be decisively shaped by developments in this region.” he added.
“The United States and India do not need to agree on everything to cooperate effectively,” said Under Secretary Colby. “What matters is that our interests and objectives increasingly converge on the most fundamental issues. Differences and even disputes are fully compatible with deepening alignment and cooperation on strategic matters. The roots of our partnership are deeper than optics and more durable than superficial comity; they are, rather, thickly embedded in lasting strategic mutual self-interest.”
Under Secretary Colby noted that both countries benefit from an Indo-Pacific in which no power can dominate the region. Both benefit from open trade and national autonomy. “These are the concrete, shared interests that form the foundation of our enduring strategic partnership,” he said.
“We both recognize the strategic centrality of military power for a stable balance in the region, and thus that defense cooperation should enhance real capability rather than be merely totemic or driven by inertia,” he said. “In this light, one of the most encouraging developments in recent years has been the steady expansion of defense cooperation between the United States and India.”
He pointed out that the United States, “is committed to working with India to hasten and augment cooperation in areas including but not limited to long-range precision fires, resilient logistics, maritime domain awareness, anti-submarine warfare, and advanced technologies.” And he added that “Defense Framework calls for our two countries to leverage defense industrial, science, and technology cooperation to enhance our forces' readiness and to jointly develop and produce defense capabilities.”
As Secretary of War Pete Hegseth summed up U.S. -India cooperation, "Our defense ties have never been stronger."