: A top US official on Wednesday expressed the hope that India-U.S. bilateral defence trade, which is currently estimated at USD 16 billion, would grow further in the years to come.
"Bilateral defence trade today between India and the United States is estimated to reach USD 16 billion...from essentially zero in 2008 and we hope to see that trade increase in the years to come," Joel Starr, Deputy Assistant Secretary from the U.S. Department of States Bureau of Political-Military Affairs said.
The security relationship between India and the United States continues to grow,from increasing military cooperation, exercises and defence trade, he said, speaking at a two-day US-India Defence Ties Conference' that began here on Wednesday.
"We strongly believe that in choosing US fighter aircraft presents an opportunity to not only fulfill military requirements, but to deepen our partnership...
The United States will offer some of the best technology widely employed by our Navy and Air Force."
The F-18 Hornet, F-21 (specially configured for Indian Air Force).... U.S. fighter aircraft would bolster Indias defence capabilities, extend its defence industrial base and position it as a supplier in the global defence sales eco- system "shared by our network of allies and partners,"he said.
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The US Consulate General in Hyderabad is hosting the conference in partnership with the Business Council for International Understanding (BCIU) and the CII.
As a result of the bilateral security cooperation in areas ranging from maritime security to counter-terrorism cooperation, the US declared India a Major Defence Partner in 2016, Joel Reifman, the US Consul General, said.
A Consulate release said the partnership between the two countries has evolved into a strategic relationship involving joint research, co-development and production of high-end defence equipment and expanded cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region.
US and Indian companies are already collaborating in the co-production of C-130 transport aircraft, F-16 fighter planes and Apache helicopters at joint facilities in Hyderabad, it said.
Through strong US-India private sector collaboration, Hyderabad and other innovation centres in India continue to evolve as important aerospace and defence manufacturing hubs, it said.
Speaking on the occasion, Telangana Industries Minister K T Rama Rao said the state was the fastest growing in the country with almost 14 per cent GSDP growth rate as of 2018-19, though it may have slowed down a bit this year.
Telangana is also at the top in Ease of Doing Business rankings, he said.
Hyderabad has historically been a strong defence manufacturing ecosystem with a number of defence labs and other establishments set up in the city decades ago, he said.
As a result of these labs, a strong private sector industry with more than 25 large companies and more than 1,000 MSMEs in the aerospace and defence sectors also exist in the city, he said.
Rao said the state government planned to set up a world- class aerospace university in Telangana shortly and invited US defence majors to be part of the initiative to create a large pool of skilled manpower.
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