The India-US Defense Policy Group, the apex body providing guidance to the direction and extent of defense cooperation between the countries is scheduled to hold its next meeting in Washington in November. This is the third annual meeting and the last one was held in Delhi in 1996. The Indian delegation will be led by the Defense Secretary and will have discussions with his counterpart in the US Department of Defense and senior members from US Armed Forces. The Joint Technical Group meeting which coordinates the transfer of technology and explores the areas of scientific interaction between USA and India will brief the DPG on the achievements and shortcomings in the area of scientific cooperation. Some of the other issues that will be discussed are the security environment in South Asia, Persian Gulf and SE Asia. A review of the Service to Service cooperation between the US and Indian Armed Forces will also feature on the agenda. Service to Service cooperation has been moving at a steady pace and has provided opportunities for joint exercises and training. Contingents from both countries have visited training locations in the host country and this has resulted in a better understanding of military doctrine and operational concepts.
Executive Steering Group Meeting
Executive Steering Group (ESG) Meetings are held annually between the Indian Army, Navy and Air Force and their counterparts in the US Forces. The meetings are co-chaired by the Vice-Chief of Army Staff, Deputy Chief of Naval Staff and Vice Chief of Air Staff along with designated commanders from the US Forces. Army and Naval ESG meetings were recently concluded and the Air Force ESG is scheduled to be held in November 97. These meetings have provided a forum for discussing operational concepts and identifying areas of possible interaction. These meetings have resulted in: -
The downsizing of the US Armed Forces, demise of the erstwhile Soviet Union and the proposed expansion of NATO have significantly altered the strategic balance a-round the world. There is a greater willingness to release US equipment for Foreign Military Sales (FMS) and this offers an opportunity for India to obtain leading edge technologies in specific areas. However, one of the impediments to this has been our reluctance to be a signatory to the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA) with the US. The agreement does not specify the type of exchange of military information but only requires each country to elucidate the procedure followed to ensure the security of information, if and when, any information is exchanged.
Meetings with US Military Leaders
The Ambassador accompanied by the Service Attaches and First Secretary Defe6ce Technology meet the Commander-in-Chief US Pacific Command and the Commander-in-Chief US Central Command on a regular basis every year. These visits have been very useful and provide a forum for formal interaction with the Regional C-in-Cs. It allows the Ambassador to project the Indian perspective on different issues be it political, military, economic, etc. It also provides the C-in-C an opportunity to have a dialogue with an influential representative of the Government of India and seek clarifications on positions taken by India on CTBT, NPT, foreign relations or any other issue. The meetings have been fruitful and have reinforced the interaction that takes place at the DPG and ESG.
Mission Areas of Cooperation
India-US Defense Technology Cooperation identifies three 'Mission Areas' (i) Aircraft Technology, (ii) Third generation anti-tank systems and (iii) Instrumentation of test sites and manpower training. Under Aircraft Technology, there has been a substantial amount of cooperation and technology transfer for the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) which is a major area of activity. An India -US Technical Advisory Group (TAG) is in place for monitoring the Technology Transfer between the US and India on the LCA.
A major joint development activity between Lockheed Martin Controls Systems, Binghamton, NY and the Aeronautical Development Establishment, Bangalore, India, has seen progress during the last four years. The activity centers around the joint development of the Engineering Test Station (ETS) meant to test the onboard Digital Flight Control Computer with all the Onboard Flight Programs (OFP) for the Light Combat Aircraft. These systems have been delivered to Lockheed Martin and are being Jointly tested in the US.
Joint Technical Group (JTG)
While there has been limited interaction in the second Mission Area, progress has been made in the third Mission Area with emphasis on Test and Evaluation of Defense Systems. This activity has been addressed through the Joint Technical Group (JTG) which is the senior bilateral forum between the US Department of Defense and Indian Ministry of Defense for discussion and coordination of defense research and production involving defense equipment cooperation, including cooperation in research and development, production, procurement and logistic support. The JTG has been established in accordance with the Agreed Minute on Defense Relations between the United States and India signed in New Delhi January 12. 1995, and operates under guidelines approved by the US-India Defense Policy Group.
The goals of the JTG are to: 1) Establish a framework for bilateral cooperation in defense, technologies 2) Develop activities that will lead to substantive cooperation and monitor progress periodically and 3) to provide a forum in which the policies, plans and requirements of both sides can be discussed. While the first two meetings of the JTG were held from 14-16 Sept 1995 in Washington and the second meeting from 22 September to 1 October 1996 at Bangalore and Delhi, the third JTG is planned to be held at Washington from 3-4 November 1997.
Interaction with US Defense Industries
The major portion of the high technology R&D effort in the US is carried out in the industrial houses. Some of the consultancy, training and software/hardware requirements of the Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) are from these very experienced defense oriented companies. Since the DRDO has 53 laboratories, the interaction with US based firms is significant. Scientists from the DRDO regularly visit US defense industries and military installations to update themselves on the state of art of defense technology.
Problems of Technology Transfer
While Indian Defense R&D does not face too many problems in export restrictions from US firms to India labs, Defense Production has faced severe restrictions since May 1997. This is especially true in the case of Bharat Electronics (BEL). BEL and several other India establishments like Indian Institute of Science, Godrej & Boyce, BARC, Indira Gandhi Center for Atomic Research and Indian Rare Earths are considered as potential contributors to India's missile and nuclear program and therefore export of any item to these firms would require the US exporter to go through the formalities of applying for an export license even if no license was required earlier. This has created enormous amount of delay and paperwork, resulting in India looking for possibilities of second sourcing and developing the technology on its own.
Future Direction of Technology Cooperation
Indian DRDO efforts towards defense modernization and thrust for high technology is basically founded on the premise of achieving self sufficiency in defense technology. The crux of technology development for India is to firstly utilize completely the technology that has been transferred and making the most efficient use of our collective research and development resources. There are vast amounts of resources in the military and civilian sector in India and these resources must be leveraged. This also calls for leveraging resources in the US through cost sharing and economics of scale afforded by coordinated research, development, production and logistic support programs. Hence Indian R&D establishments and Defense production units need to maintain their credibility with their US counterparts. What has been established in India-US defense technology cooperation is a foundation upon which weight will be laid Gradually, systematically and in keeping with the aims and aspirations of the two countries. This of course will be possible only if both sides maintain the momentum of technology interaction.