Prime Minister Narendra Modi sails full steam ahead in courting the United States, as though ideologically driven. In Washington this week for his third major bilateral summit with President Barack Obama since September 2014, Mr Modi spoke gushingly as he went about praising US entrepreneurship and democracy to persistent applause in the US Congress. He noted in his address to Congress that India-America ties had “overcome the hesitations of history”, meaning the melting away of India’s past reservations about US militaristic policies around the world of which it wanted no part after more than a century of supplying troops and supplies for British colonial conquests.
Appropriately enough, in light of changing realities, the PM’s trip commenced with paying respects at the Arlington Cemetery to commemorate fallen American soldiers. In the joint statement signed during the PM’s visit, the US now recognises India as a “major defence partner”, and would facilitate technology-sharing to a level that is commensurate with cooperation with major allies. To all intents and purposes, we may now deem ourselves an “ally” of the United States, although that specific term is avoided, for it entails such close military coordination that despatch of troops in aid of each other’s mission may become inescapable.
With the help of the US, India has, in effect, just become a member of the Missile Technology Control Regime. Washington has also publicly re-affirmed its support to India’s application to the Nuclear Suppliers Group, and the US has indicated its desire to help India become a member of the Wassenaar Arrangement and the Australia Group. These four export-restrictive regimes for different kinds of weaponry play a key hand in framing rules that impact international security.
India, for its part, appears on board to sign the three “foundational” pacts with the US so that it dovetails its defence cooperation with that of the Pentagon. The text for LEMOA, which deals with supplies and fuel for each other’s militaries, is now ready. Work may now proceed on CISMOA and BECA, which deal with communications interoperability and security, as well as cooperation in the areas of sensors and satellites.
The security cooperation focuses sharply on the Pacific and the Indian Ocean areas, giving the impression of being China-centric. But to the west of India, to begin with Pakistan, there is hardly any reference except to name some terrorist groups. US support to Pakistan may in fact now increase since Washington would not like to lose out to Beijing in Islamabad’s affections. These are issues our policy makers must contend with.
