Gen. Singh is in the US on a 4-day tour.
By Deepak Chitnis
WASHINGTON, DC: India’s Chief of Army Staff, Gen. Bikram Singh, is in the US for a four-day tour, primarily for his induction into the US Army War College (USAWC) International Fellows Hall of Fame.
Out of the four days he is here, three days would take up time for the induction tour. Gen. Singh will also be giving a keynote speech to the USAWC graduating class of 2013-2014 during his time in the country. He will visit Washington, DC, and Fort Bragg and Fort Benning, which are located in North Carolina and Georgia, respectively.
Gen. Singh will also likely use his time in the US to continue US-India military talks and advance India’s military interests.
In particular, it is expected that Gen. Singh will discuss the US-India defense relationship, the consignment of Howitzer missiles that India has purchased from the US, Indian border security in regards to Pakistan and China, and the US troop withdrawal from Afghanistan and the consequent security implications for the Middle East, a concern he has voiced previously. He may also discuss the possibility of conducting joint military exercises with US and Indian forces.
A highly regarded honor in the international military community, selection to the International Fellows Hall of Fame is notoriously difficult. To qualify, a candidate must either be a senior officer in one of his country’s military service branches, be assigned to the highest command position within that branch, be the commander of a combined command while holding the highest rank within that military branch, or be internationally recognized as “having made a significant and enduring military or humanitarian contribution to international peace and stability” while holding the highest military rank in a given branch.
Candidates are nominated by senior US military representatives via the submitting of a nomination packet, which includes documentation, a letter of nomination, bio-data, and photographs of the officer in question. Only one nomination packet is processed per financial quarter. If the candidate is deemed worthy, he is formally invited to the Hall of Fame, and then inducted.
Gen. Singh is an alumnus of the USAWC, located in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, having completed a course there in 2004. A graduate of the National Defence Academy, Singh joined the Sikh Light Infantry in 1972. During his career, he has served as a director in the Military Operations Directorate during the Kargil War, the Deputy Director-General of Perspective Planning (a military term for “strategy”), and as the Director-General of Staff Duties.
To contact the author, email to deepakchitnis@americanbazaaronline.com