Wells is all set for the Congressional Subcommittee Hearing on Thursday.
The Trump administration has once again reiterated that its defense relationship with India is of paramount importance and it wants India to enhance its own security and security of other countries by addressing common concerns in the Indo-Pacific region.
In a written submission to the Congressional Subcommittee, Alice Wells, the acting secretary of state for the South and Central Asian Affairs, said the Indo-Pacific region is a trade and commercial hub and India is capable of providing “net security†in the region.
“The reason why defence cooperation with India is so vital to US interests is because we need India to be a net security provider in the Indo-Pacific, a region that serves as the fulcrum of global trade and commerce, with nearly half of the world’s 90,000 commercial vessels many sailing under the US flag, and two-thirds of traded oil travelling through the region,†Wells said in the written statement.
Wells is all set for the Congressional Subcommittee Hearing on Thursday where she will be a testify during “Maintaining U.S. Influence in South Asia: The FY 2018 Budgetâ€
In her statement, Wells said that the Indo-Pacific region is home to half of the planet’s population and has some of the world’s fastest growing economies.
The statement also supported that defense deal between US and India for the transfer of F-18 and F-16 fighter planes submitted by Boeing and Lockheed Martin respectively.
Wells noted that India, with the experience that it garnered in the last seventy years after its independence, is capable of upholding the international order, so much so that investments in defense transfer will end up as a milestone in the future.
“Working with like-minded partners, India has the strategic and economic potential to uphold the international order that has served so much of humanity over the past seven decades. The investments we make in our security partnership now will pay dividends for decades to come,†she said.
She pointed out that India and the US are also partners in countering global terrorism, adding that joint training exercises and counter terrorism cooperation between the two nations is the need of the hour.
“India is situated in a dangerous neighborhood, where terrorist attacks have killed both Indians and Americans alike. Joint training and capacity building are essential to expanding our CT cooperation,†she said.
According to the figures of US State Department Anti-Terrorism Assistance program, more than 1,100 Indian security personnel have participated in the training program conducted by the US since 2009.
“In the words of President Trump, the relationship between India and the US has never been stronger, has never been better,†she said in the testimony.
“The President’s first meeting with Prime Minister [Narendra] Modi in June set a positive tone and ambitious agenda for strengthening bilateral ties, particularly in the areas of defense, energy, and trade,†she added.