US and India to address export control and other roadblocks to defence trade
The United States and India have held an inaugural meeting of an initiative to speed-up military cooperation by addressing export controls, licensing and other hurdles to defence trade.
The US Department of Defense (‘DoD’) and the Indian Ministry of Defence (‘MoD’) held the first virtual meeting of the India-US Defense Acceleration Ecosystem (‘INDUS-X’) Senior Advisory Group on 4 September, where they discussed ‘ongoing initiatives to drive innovation and equip both countries’ armed forces with the capabilities they need to defend a free and open Indo-Pacific.’
‘The two countries commit to accelerating and deepening the integration between our respective defense industrial sectors,’ announced a roadmap for cooperation released in June.
‘The United States and India will work to facilitate dialogue between government and industry to address areas of mutual concern that may inhibit collaboration, such as licensing, export controls, security of supply, barriers to defense trade, foreign direct investment, and technology transfer and security,’ according to the roadmap, which adds that, ‘Both sides are committed to identifying and discussing any regulatory barriers in the defense domain.’
‘With an aim to make India a logistic hub for the United States and other partners in the Indo-Pacific region, the United States intends to support India in the creation of logistic, repair, and maintenance infrastructure for aircraft and ships,’ the roadmap says.
At their inaugural meeting, the Indian side announced topics for the first two joint challenges, focused on undersea communication and maritime intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance, the DoD said.
According to a fact sheet, ‘The Senior Advisory Group will recommend adjustments to respective regulatory schemes (e.g., DFARS, ITAR, EAR, Make in India) to streamline start-up innovation between the two countries and increase procurement opportunities.’
https://media.defense.gov/2023/Jun/21/2003244837/-1/-1/0/FACTSHEET-INDUS-X-FINAL.PDF
