In a strong message to China, India and the US have decided to move much closer militarily. New Delhi and Washington will be signing the Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement for Geo-Spatial Cooperation (BECA) during the 2+2 meeting to be held on Tuesday. The two countries have also agreed on deeper cooperation in Indo-Pacific, obviously with China in mind.
Under this agreement, India will gain access to “precision data and topographical images on a real time basis from United States military satellites”. The two countries have already signed agreements to exchange military logistics and enable secure communications.
This was decided in a meeting between Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and his American counterpart, Mark Esper. Both the leaders expressed satisfaction that BECA would be signed during this visit and also at the close engagements between the armed forces of the two countries, said a statement.
The hour-long meeting between Rajnath and Mark Espar at South Block came a day before the bilateral 2+2 ministerial dialogue to be held on Tuesday in Delhi. Sources said that both countries have decided to deepen cooperation with an emphasis on the Indo-Pacific.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defence Secretary Mark Esper are in India for the third round of the 2+2 talks with their Indian counterparts Rajnath Singh and Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar.
Esper also welcomed Australia’s participation in next month’s Malabar exercise in what is being seen as a stern message to China. Sources said that Rajnath Singh and Espar discussed the situation along the Line of Actual Control and China’s aggressive activities on the de facto border. Sources told The Daily Guardian that during talk with Rajnath, Espar expressed deep displeasure over Chinese army PLA’s misdeeds. Officials say that closer military ties between India and the US will drive Chinese leadership jittery. “Espar spoke at length about China’s growing aggression in other regions of Asia also,” said an official.
Foreign and Defence ministers of India and the US will have detailed discussion on the issues related to Beijing during 2+2 dialogue on Tuesday. Sources said that Rajnath Singh explained how India handled the LAC standoff effectively and reiterated the country’s resolve not to leave even an inch of land along the LAC. Rajnath Singh said the talks would add “new vigour” to India-US defence relations and cooperation.
What is important is that the US last week said that it was watching the India-China standoff in Ladakh closely and sharing information with Delhi. The US said it wanted to ensure that the situation did not escalate.