US to boost India’s prowess for better regional security

At the end of one-and-half-hour bilateral discussions with External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj in New Delhi on Wednesday, the visiting US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, without mentioning China, made it clear that Washington was looking to strengthen co-operation with India in the Indo-Pacific region and backed its emergence as a leading power.

To achieve that goal, Washington is ready to provide the best technology for India’s military modernisation, which includes discussing deals for F16 and F18 fighter jets. In 2003, USA had asked New Delhi to become a core member of the Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI) group to allow Indian defence forces to provide maritime security that included stopping, conducting searches of air, sea and land cargo linked with “dangerous technologies”. But this did not materialize due to India’s reticence.

At the joint press interaction, Swaraj and Tillerson asked Pakistan to take concrete action against terror groups in the region. Tillerson said during his stop-over at Islamabad, he asked the leadership there to take action against terror groups and said an enhancement in their capabilities may pose a threat to them.

“We gave our list of expectations to leaders in Pakistan and told them that terror havens will not be tolerated,” said …read more