US and India rapidly expand their military cooperation including new INDUS X initiative.

This is a transformational moment in the U.S.-India defense partnership, a senior Defense Department official said at the Pentagon on June 20, David Vergun, of the US Department of Defense, reports. "To have the world's largest democracies with some of the most innovative workers and companies working more closely together on strategic technologies and how we can leverage them for security is a natural next step in this relationship," the official said during a briefing.
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U.S. Green Berets from the U.S. Army’s 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne) and India’s National Security Guard train with a Saab Carl-Gustaf Recoilless Rifle during a counterterrorism exercise in Chennai, India, on Feb. 28, 2023 (Picture source: courtesy photo)

The United States and India are increasingly doing things in their defense partnership that people wouldn't have said was possible 20 years ago, the senior Defense Department officia said. For instance, 20 years ago, there were no U.S. defense sales to India at all. "Now, we're talking about co-producing and co-developing major systems together."

Also, India is joining the U.S. in annual air and maritime exercises in the region, the official said. "We now have working groups on everything ranging from cyberspace and critical technologies to maritime security, and India is leading in those forums together with the U.S. and like-minded partners". Critical technologies include artificial intelligence, advanced sensor development, unmanned systems, quantum physics and undersea domain awareness.

India will be a critical strategic partner with the United States in the coming decades. India's growing commitment to playing a more engaged international role, including in the Indo-Pacific Quad, demonstrates a new and growing willingness to join the United States to protect and advance a shared vision of a free, open and rules-based global order, the official said. The Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, commonly called the Quad, is a strategic security dialogue among Australia, India, Japan and the United States.

Tomorrow, the new INDUS X initiative takes place, bringing together U.S. and Indian stakeholders, research and academic institutions, industry, small startups and investors. That initiative will focus on accelerating and scaling up commercial technologies that have military applications, providing agreed-upon standards for certification and testing, and making it easier for startups to move their technology into the defense spaces and obtain the capital to do so, the official said.

According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which is hosting the event, INDUS X will be held in Washington just prior to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's White House visit. "INDUS X has the potential to be a catalyst for India to achieve its target of $5 billion in defense exports by 2025 and for India to diversify its defense supply chain. The conference will feature a defense exhibition where firms will showcase technologies and platforms that can benefit both countries' border security, maritime domain awareness, space situational awareness and more, contributing to a more stable and secure Indo-Pacific region," according to a statement on the Chamber's website.

Launch of the India-U.S. Defense Acceleration Ecosystem (INDUS-X)

The U.S. Department of Defense and the Indian Ministry of Defense launched the India-U.S. Defense Acceleration Ecosystem (INDUS-X) on June 21 at a catalyst event hosted by the U.S.-India Business Council. Launched against the backdrop of Prime Minister Modi's State Visit to the White House and at a time of historic momentum for the relationship between the United States and India, INDUS-X will vitalize our defense industrial cooperation and unlock new innovations in technology and manufacturing. INDUS-X will create jobs for working families in both countries and promote global peace, security, and prosperity.

The event convened representatives from more than 30 U.S. and Indian start-ups, as well as government, business, academic, and thought leaders, for wide-ranging discussions to advance cutting-edge technology cooperation between our nations' defense industrial ecosystems.

Following the launch event, the U.S. Department of Defense and the Indian Ministry of Defence welcomed an ambitious collaboration agenda that outlines the initiatives INDUS-X stakeholders intend to spearhead. These initiatives complement existing government-to-government collaboration and include joint prize challenges for start-ups, roundtable events, mentor-protégé initiatives between major primes and start-ups, and the formation of a Senior Advisory Group.

In engagements throughout the day, U.S. and Indian officials affirmed that INDUS-X will catalyze innovation and help equip both countries' armed forces with the capabilities they need to defend a free and open Indo-Pacific.

Defense News June 2023