US, India look to boost naval ties

New Delhi, September 6

US Assistant Secretary of Defence for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs Ely Ratner and Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Donald Lu will co-chair the 6th United States-India 2+2 Intersessional Dialogue on Thursday and the Maritime Security Dialogue on Friday during their visit to India.

Information-sharing, logistics, technology and high-end navy cooperation will be discussed during the meetings, US Department of Defence Spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Martin Meiners said in a statement.

They will discuss how to take forward an ambitious set of initiatives across the defence partnership, especially in the maritime domain.

“Ratner’s trip reaffirms the Department of Defense’s deep commitment to working with like-minded partners to advance our shared vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific,” the statement of the United States read. These meetings are a build-up to the 2+2 Ministerial meet scheduled for next year. Even as these meetings are taking place in India, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will be part of the 2+2 Ministerial dialogue in Japan. This year, India and Japan had operationalised a key agreement for reciprocal provision of supplies and services between their defence forces.

Warship ‘Taragiri’ to be launched on Sept 11

Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited will launch a warship, Taragiri, a stealth frigate, on September 11. To be fitted with BrahMos missile, it can achieve a speed of over 28 knots.