Anti-piracy ops: US Defence Secy appreciates Indian Navy’s role
New Delhi: US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin on Monday conveyed to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh his appreciation for the Indian Navy’s role in conducting anti-piracy operations in the Indian Ocean Region.
Singh and Austin held a phone conversation and a readout of the talks issued by the defence ministry mentioned the US defence secretary’s compliment for the Indian Navy.
It is understood that the two ministers also deliberated on India’s planned acquisition of 31 MQ-9B drones from the US under the foreign military sale (FMS) route. A readout by the US side said Singh and Austin discussed growing momentum in the ‘major defence partnership’ between the US and India in support of a “free and open Indo-Pacific region”.
It also referred to India’s support for the rule of law in the Arabian Sea and adjacent waterways.
Singh and Austin discussed ways and means to implement the ambitious India-US defence cooperation roadmap that seeks to significantly elevate strategic ties between the two countries.
“The US Secretary of Defence appreciated the important role being played by the Indian Navy in conducting anti-piracy operations in the Indian Ocean Region,” the ministry said.
On Friday, the Indian Navy executed a dramatic mid-sea operation rescuing 17 hostages and capturing 35 armed pirates around 2,600 km from the Indian coast after seizing a Maltese-flagged vessel that was hijacked on December 14.
The Navy deployed its warship INS Kolkata, long-endurance Sea Guardian drones, P-8I surveillance aircraft and airdropped elite MARCOS commandos from a C-17 plane of the Indian Air Force. In the last few weeks, the Indian Navy extended assistance to a number of merchant vessels in the western Indian Ocean following attacks on them.
In a post on ‘X’, Singh said he and Austin discussed a range of issues including the regional security situation.
“Had a telephonic conversation with my friend, @SecDef Mr Lloyd Austin and briefly discussed a range of bilateral, regional security and defence cooperation issues,” Singh said.
“We also discussed ways and means to implement the India-US Defence Cooperation Roadmap which was concluded last year,” he said.
The defence ministry said both Singh and Austin also reviewed the bilateral events such as the INDUS-X summit held in Delhi last month.
“Both Ministers briefly discussed a range of bilateral, regional security and defence cooperation issues,” it said. “They reviewed the recent bilateral events such as the INDUS-X summit held in New Delhi in February, and the bilateral tri-service exercise ‘Tiger Triumph’ which has also commenced in India on March 18,” it said.
“The two ministers discussed ways and means to implement the India-US defence cooperation roadmap which was concluded last year. Other defence industrial cooperation issues such as repair of US naval ships in Indian shipyards were also briefly discussed,” he said.
The readout by the US said Singh and Austin lauded progress on bilateral defence initiatives following the fifth annual US-India 2+2 ministerial dialogue in November.
