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The Defence Minister Shri Pranab Mukherjee, who is presently in Washington on an official four-day visit to the US called on Secretary of Defence, Donald Rumsfeld. The meeting was held in a warm and cordial atmosphere and covered a range of bilateral and international issues of interest to both sides. The meeting revealed a high degree of convergence on issues and challenges facing the international community, in particular on combating terrorism and violent religious extremism, preventing the spread of weapons of mass destruction, protecting the free flow of commerce and promoting security and stability in Asia. As two important democracies, the US and India intend to maintain their dialogue on the regional and international situation. Both sides agreed that US-India defence relations are an important pillar of their transforming bilateral relationship.
In the bilateral sphere, Secretary Rumsfeld and the Defence Minister signed a document entitled ‘New Framework for US-India Defence Relations’. The document sets the framework for US-India defence relations for the next ten years and visualizes an enhanced level of cooperation covering military to military relations as well as a defence industrial and technological relationship. Both sides agreed to constitute a new ‘Defence Procurement and Production Group’ broadening the scope of the existing ‘Security Cooperation Group’ under the US-India Defence Policy Group (DPG) and to intensify interaction in the context of the DPG. They also agreed to sign an agreement on ‘Research, Development, Testing and Evaluation’ with a view to future cooperation in the sphere of Defence Research and Development. The US side also offered to advance the proposed briefing on the Patriot PAC-III system which is part of the Phase-II of the Next Steps in Strategic Partnership (NSSP). The two sides will also be signing a Letter of acceptance on naval pilot training. Both sides agreed to step up interaction between the Indian Armed Forces and US Commands.
Earlier the Defence Minister also called on Vice President Mr Richard Cheney, Secretary of State, Ms Condoleezza Rice and National Security Adviser, Mr Stephen J. Hadley
SKS/ RAJ
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