India signing LSA, CISMOA and BECA pacts critical for US DTTI cooperation

The Dollar Business Bureau In a move towards Defence Trade and Technology Initiative (DTTI), the United States officials on Thursday stressed India to ink three key pacts that have been pending over years. The three pacts that were mentioned are Logistics Support Agreement (LSA), Communication Interoperability and Security Memorandum Agreement (CISMOA) and Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement for Geo-Spatial Cooperation (BECA). Terming them as ‘foundation pacts’ for stronger defence cooperation between the two countries, the US officials said, “If India did not sign the pacts, it would become an issue at some point in the future, as the two countries worked on high-end defence technology.” According to a report from India Defence Research Wing, the US officials made these statements post the meeting that was co-chaired by the Indian Defence Production Secretary G Mohan Kumar and the US Under Secretary of Defence, Frank Kendall. During the meeting, India and the US officials discussed various issues of DTTI for defence cooperation between the two countries. While Frank Kendall says that the pacts were not directly linked to the DTTI, the Deputy Assistant Secretary of US Defence Trade Controls Kenneth Handelman said ‘they would become necessary in the long run’.  Handelman went on to say that DTTI has been running in the absence of these three foundational agreements, but these are going to be an issue in the later period, whether it is of LSA or CISMOA. The US says that BECA and CISMOA are the technology enablers that allow it for high-end technology transfer to India in avionics and electronic sectors. Whereas the LSA provides military logistics support for each other’s warships and aircrafts on a barter or an equal-value exchange basis. This pressurizing move by the US comes in wake of its much needed support for India in co-development, co-production of pathfinder projects, aircraft carrier technologies, jet engines, discussed during Obama’s visit. In another case, India has also sought the US technology assistance for electromagnetic aircraft launch systems.  

This article was published on February 27, 2015.