New Delhi
3 July 2007
The presence in Chennai of the USS Nimitz is confirmation that a new
era in the defence relationship between the United States and India has arrived, US
Ambassador to India David C Mulford said.
"Today, the Nimitz brings a new era in US--India military-to-military relations. This ship
visit, the first ever port call in India by an American aircraft carrier, is the latest example
of the positive development of our defence relationship," he said in a statement on
Tuesday.
Mulford's observations came barely a day after the CPI(M) reiterated its concern over the
port call by the USS Nimitz. The CPI(M) Politburo on Monday said, "The significance of
the visit of the USS Nimitz is that the UPA government is step by step implementing the
defence framework agreement with the United States which will convert India into a
military ally of the United States."
In an oblique reference to New Delhi's decision last week to clear the process for
acquiring 126 multi-role combat aircraft worth Rs 42,000 crore, Mulford said that the US
wanted to be long-term partners with India.
Mulford said, "India is discovering, as many other countries around the world already
know, that buying from today's American military and defence companies is not just an
exchange of money for goods, but rather the invitation to a long-term partnership of
support for the product throughout its life cycle. Our firms want to be long-term partners
with India, and are looking forward to the benefits of joint technology development and
co-production with Indian counterparts."
"Those who attended Aero India this February saw that the United States had its largest
representation there ever, both in terms of planes and number of companies. The most
exciting part of that show was watching the impressive F-16 and F-18 demonstration
flights, both of which will be major competitors for the Multi-Role Combat Aircraft bid
approved last Friday by the Indian Government," he added.
American F-16 (Lockheed Martin) and F-18 (Boeing) are competing with other
manufacturers to win the contract for India's biggest defence purchase ever.
Mulford went on to state: "This is a new era of defence cooperation. Last year, India
purchased the USS Trenton - now renamed the INS Jalashwa. She was commissioned
just two weeks ago, becoming India's second largest Naval ship. The work we've done
together to prepare the Jalashwa for delivery to India has demonstrated American
reliability in major defence transactions, setting what we all hope will be a growing
defence relationship. At the moment, we are discussing the possible sale to India of C-
130 aircraft, the celebrated workhorse of multi-role lift airplanes with the longest
continuous production run of any military aircraft."
No comments:
Post a Comment