Calling on India and the United States to quickly look at co-development of military hardware and not just co-production, U.S. Ambassador Eric Garcetti on Tuesday outlined how India can be a “great market place and producer” for countries that might not always be able to afford top-shelf equipment. This can be done to dissuade countries from going to “mutual adversaries” to get their weaponry, he added.
“We can deter, we can defend, we can also de-escalate together, because the goal... is not to wage war but is to protect peace,” Mr. Garcetti said, speaking at the second India-U.S. Defence Acceleration Ecosystem (INDUS-X) summit. “Co-production is not the same thing as co-development. We need to make sure we are looking at co-development not just for the sake of that but something that India needs in its military and that America needs it... and quickly we can look at co-development...”
The INDUS-X was launched in June 2023 during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s State visit to the U.S., and is meant to expand strategic technology partnerships and defence industrial cooperation between the Indian and U.S. governments, businesses, and academic institutions. INDUS X will be a defence innovation bridge which would include joint challenges, a joint innovation fund, academia engagement, industry-startup connections, investment by private entities in defence projects, mentoring by experts, and niche technology projects, the Defence Ministry had stated.
