India and the United States on Friday assessed the progress made in the various aspects of defence cooperation between the two countries, including defence trade, technology, procurement, industry, Research and Development, and mil-to-mil engagement. The two sides agreed to build a policy environment conducive to the collaboration between the defence industry and start-ups in the two countries. An understanding in this regard was reached during the 15th meeting of the India-US Defence Policy Group (DPG) held in Washington DC on Friday. The Indian side was led by Defence Secretary of India, Sanjay Mitra, while the US side was led by Undersecretary of Defence for Policy, John Rood. During the meeting, the two countries recognised the benefit of enabling the defence agreements concluded by the two sides, and appreciated India’s designation as a Major Defence Partner of the US. In addition, they underlined the importance of collaboration between the defence industry and start-ups in the two countries and agreed to pursue a policy environment conducive to this. Various working groups and mechanisms under the DPG briefed the Co-chairs of the progress made in their respective areas and got the latter’s guidance on addressing process issues for meaningful, sustainable and mutually beneficial cooperation. The two sides reaffirmed the role of the DPG as an important part of the Ministerial 2+2 mechanism, helping translate the shared strategic vision of cooperation into reality. They agreed to hold the next meeting of the DPG in India at mutually convenient dates.
