India is a “very influential and powerful player” in the Asia Pacific and is going to play an ever increasingly role in the region, US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter has said on the eve of his visit to India.
India is already a very influential and powerful force in the whole Indo-Asia-Pacific region, starting with the Indian Ocean.Ash Carter, Defence Secretary, USA
He said that his three-day trip to India, beginning on Saturday, would be an important step in the implementation of some of the key decisions being taken by US President Barack Obama and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the last two years. However, Carter remained tight-lipped on the decisions to be taken during his India trip that would take him to Goa and New Delhi.
Obama Administration’s “Asia Pacific rebalance” and Modi Government’s “Act East Asia” is what Carter described as “strategic handshake”, between the two largest democracies of the world.
The Defence Secretary acknowledged that India’s “influence stems all the way around, South East Asia and into East Asia”, and also referred to the close relationship it now has with Japan in the Asia-Pacific region.
US Has “Global Agenda” With India
The United States has a “whole global agenda” with India covering all issues while the relationship with Pakistan has to do with issues of terrorism and Afghanistan, said US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter. Carter also reiterated that from the perspective of the US there is no India-Pak hyphenation.
The days are gone when we only deal with India as the other side of the Pakistan coin, or Pakistan as the other side of the India coin. I know that there are those in India and Pakistan who are still glued to that way of thinking. But the US put that behind us some time ago.Ash Carter, Defence Secretary, USA
Carter was responding to a question on the impact of India-US relationship on Pakistan at the Council for Foreign Relations (CFR), a top American think-tank.
With respect to Pakistan (things are) totally different. We have a big set of issues having to do with the border with Afghanistan where we continue to operate, with terrorism, both on the territory of Pakistan and also obviously cross-border into Afghanistan, including affecting US service members there.Ash Carter, Defence Secretary, USA
Carter to Meet Modi, Parrikar and Doval
At the invitation of his Indian counterpart Manohar Parrikar, Carter would be spending nearly two days in Parrikar’s hometown Goa. His Goa trip is also expected to be marked by the India visit of USS Blue Ridge.
After spending two days in Goa, Carter would fly to New Delhi where he would meet Prime Minister Modi and the National Security Advisor Ajit Doval. Without going into details, he said the two countries would also be concluding several important agreements, including one on commercial shipping information exchange, which will “make many new things possible” in the future.
A senior defence official said that the US is very keen on exploring the possibilities of co-producing fighter aircraft with India and the issue in under discussion. India has also expressed interest in buying armed drone from the US.
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