 "2+2 talks")
Even as they have reiterated their support for Israel in its fight against terrorism, India and the US have called for a ceasefire in the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict to ensure humanitarian assistance. In a joint statement issued on Friday after the fifth India-US 2+2 Ministerial meeting, both sides also stressed the need to begin post-conflict reconstruction in Ukraine.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh met with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin in New Delhi. The city had last hosted the summit in 2020.
As Business Standard had reported earlier this week, the ongoing wars in Ukraine and Israel figured heavily in the discussions.
On the Israel-Gaza war, the joint statement said both sides had committed to continue close diplomatic coordination with key partners in the region “to prevent the conflict from spiralling further, preserve stability in West Asia and work towards a political solution and durable peace”. The statement assumes significance since it shows New Delhi has become a geopolitical player in the region with enough diplomatic leverage.
However, both countries also stressed their support for Israel. “Noting horrific terrorist attacks against Israel, the ministers reiterated that India and the US stand with Israel against terrorism and called for adherence to international humanitarian law, including with regard to the protection of civilians,” the statement said. They also called for the immediate release of all remaining hostages. According to Israel, 240 of its citizens, mostly women, children and the elderly, were kidnapped on October 7 by Hamas.
They also committed to continuing coordination with partners in the region on humanitarian assistance to meet the urgent needs of Palestinian civilians in Gaza. In a key move, both sides expressed support for “humanitarian pauses” in the fighting. Till now, Israel has rebuffed all calls for a ceasefire, while Hamas, the terror group in power in Gaza, has continued to fire rockets targeting Israeli cities.
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On Ukraine, both sides pledged to continue humanitarian assistance to Ukrainians and concurred on the need for post-conflict reconstruction in Ukraine. They again underscored the growing impact of this war on the global economic system and food security, with consequences predominantly affecting the global South.
The stalemate in Ukraine, 20 months after the Russian invasion began in February 2022, has recently been overshadowed by another war in West Asia. However, its diplomatic implications for India's energy sector have remained potent as the discounts on crude oil India imports from Moscow have reduced in recent months.
Closer defence ties
Both sides committed to a series of steps to boost the defence industrial partnership and enhance India's indigenous defence production, facilitate technology sharing, and promote supply-chain resilience.
In June 2023, both sides had signed the landmark ‘Roadmap for India-US Defence Industrial Cooperation’, which is expected to bolster India's defence manufacturing capabilities, and bring the militaries of both nations closer on the technology front. The move was seen as an effort by the US to wean New Delhi away from its traditional dependence on Russia for defence supplies.
Both sides are now looking forward to the finalisation of a Security of Supply Arrangement (Sosa), a key priority in the ‘Roadmap’, which will further integrate the defence industrial ecosystems of both countries, the statement said.
It added the US had committed to spurring investment in India’s growing maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) sector, which encompasses aircraft maintenance and mid-voyage repair of US naval vessels. As a result of talks, American industry is expected to further increase India’s MRO capabilities, including for the repair of aircraft and unmanned aerial vehicles.
Both nations have also decided to deepen discussions on export control and technology transfers as part of the Strategic Trade Dialogue.
Multilateral diplomacy
The statement said both countries had relaunched consultations on Africa, with the aim to explore potential trilateral cooperation in the continent. They will also work together on convening the next round of East Asia Consultations at an early date. The US also reaffirmed its continued support for India’s permanent membership in a reformed United Nations Security Council.
The ministers appreciated the recently held Mineral Security Partnership Principals’ Meeting in London to catalyse public- and private-sector investment to build diverse, secure and responsible global critical mineral supply chains. Blinken has pledged to work with the International Energy Agency towards making India a member of the intergovernmental body, currently comprising the US and almost all European Union member nations.
With space quickly becoming a major area of cooperation, the talks also pointed out that a fifth sub-working group focusing on ‘space commerce’ had been established under the India-US Civil Space Joint Working Group. Meanwhile, ‘planetary defence’ has also been added as a topic under the Working Group led by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the Indian Space Research Organisation.
The joint statement also said India was on its way to joining the multilateral Space Mission Planning Advisory Group (SMPAG) and International Asteroid Warning Network (IAWN), by the end of the year. The two multi-government initiatives are part of major efforts being made by the UN's Office for Outer Space Affairs to stitch together closer coordination among space agencies of member nations.
