Boost India-US defence technology cooperation
US Ambassador to India Richard Verma's recent reassurance that Washington, DC, remains committed to streamlining the transfer of defence technologies to India is welcome. This area is now considered to be one of the bright spots in the reinvigorated India-US bilateral and fits well into the policy priorities of both Governments: While the US is seeking to strengthen its relationship with India, particularly the strategic and military aspects, mostly in order to contain China's rising influence, India is also keen on accessing American technology — and not just in the field of defence but across the board — so as to spur growth and innovation within the country.
It was in keeping with these goals that the Defense Trade and Technology Initiative was launched in 2012. The initiative was a major bilateral achievement, given that even about a decade ago, technology transfers in defence or in any other sector for that matter were unimaginable. The 2005 India-US nuclear deal changed all of that, allowing for the normalisation of bilateral ties, which then opened the floodgates for the so-called “partnership of the century”. The partnership didn't take off immediately due to domestic and international factors, but in the past year and a half, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has put the India-US bilateral on the priority track — and his efforts have found equally reciprocation from the Obama Administration.
Talks are already underway for cooperation in and joint development of a host of projects, and steps have been taken at the ground level to tackle bureaucratic bottlenecks. For example, in January, the US Department of Defence established the India Rapid Reaction Cell to focus only on advancing the DTTI and taking the India-US defence collaboration to the next level. India is the only country for whom the US has such a cell. The IRRC is in addition to the joint inter-agency task force that already monitors the DTTI from both sides.
However, if the India-US defence technology cooperation is to fully realise its potential, New Delhi also has to take steps to smoothen the processes. For example, the US has what is commonly known as ‘foundational documents' that form the bedrock of its security cooperation with foreign powers. India has been reluctant to sign these. Similarly, while India has its own reasons for the 49 per cent FDI ceiling in the defence sector, it will have to accept that US firms too will be watching out for their interests when deciding what kind of technology to share in these circumstances.
Outside the defence sector, India's general resistance — even if justified in some cases — to international patent regimes, for example, will be a challenge for the smooth transfer of technology to this country. Finally, even if India gets access to all the technologies it wants, it will still need to develop infrastructure, build facilities and train high-skilled labour within the country so as to effectively use that technology.