Promoting U.S.-Indian Defense Cooperation

This monograph analyzes one of the most crucial U.S. security relationships. India is the most populous democracy, while the United States is the oldest. India's growing global influence generates new partnership opportunities regarding counterterrorism, regional security, foreign arms sales, and international defense interoperability. The U.S.-Indian relationship has greatly improved under recent U.S. Presidential administrations, with bipartisan support in the U.S. national security community. The previous Obama administration continued the process of building U.S.-Indian military ties that began after the Cold War. Recent progress has included deepening defense-industrial collaboration, increasing intelligence sharing, expanding cooperation into East Asia, and normalizing U.S.-Indian nuclear ties. With the advent of a new U.S. Presidential administration, the value of strong U.S.-Indian security ties persists. In the words of former Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter, "the U.S.-India relationship is destined to be one of the defining partnerships of the 21st century." DOUGLAS C. LOVELACE, JR. Director Strategic Studies Institute and U.S. Army War College Press