US Senator Marco Rubio introduced a bill in Congress on Thursday that proposes treating India on an equal footing with its allies such as Japan, Israel, Korea, and NATO allies in terms of technology transfers, supporting India in its response to growing threats to its territorial integrity, and prohibiting Pakistan from receiving security assistance if it is found to have sponsored terrorism against India.
“Communist China continues to aggressively expand its domain in the Indo-Pacific region, all while attempting to undermine the sovereignty and autonomy of our regional partners.” It is critical for the United States to maintain its support in combating these destructive techniques. “India, along with other nations in the region, is not alone,” Rubio stated after introducing the United States-India Defense Cooperation Act in the Senate.
In order to strengthen our partnership with India, it’s essential we increase our strategic relationship w/ New Delhi. 🇺🇲 🇮🇳
— Senator Marco Rubio (@SenMarcoRubio) July 25, 2024
Introduced a bill to best support India as they continue to face aggression from Communist China.https://t.co/QVF1gU7TqP
The bill is unlikely to advance much given the short schedule of a sharply split Congress in an election year, but given the bipartisan support for the US-India relationship, it may be revived in the following Congress. The bill emphasizes how crucial the US-India alliance is to fending off Communist China’s dominance. It states that strengthening our strategic political, economic, and military ties with New Delhi is crucial to fortifying this alliance.
The bill would, among other things, establish a Statement of Policy declaring the US would aid India in responding to increasing threats to its territorial integrity, give it the security support it needs to fend off enemies, and work with India on defense and civil civil space, technology, medicine and economic investments.
When enacted into law, it would give India a limited exemption from CAATSA sanctions for purchases of Russian military hardware that it currently possesses. It would also convey to Congress that selling India major defense hardware, defense services, defense articles, and design and construction services is in line with US interests and that India’s possession of the necessary deterrent weapons is in the national interest.
It suggests that when it comes to technology transfers, India should be treated on an equal footing with US allies like Japan, Israel, Korea, and NATO allies. The Secretary of State should be given permission to sign a memorandum of understanding with India to boost military cooperation. Excess defense articles should be expedited to India for a two-year period, giving India the same status as other allies. Finally, international military education and training cooperation should be expanded with New Delhi.
Congress is required to receive a report on Pakistan’s use of offensive force against India, including through terrorism and proxy groups. If Pakistan is determined to have sponsored terrorism against India, security assistance will not be granted to Pakistan.
This is the first time an India-centric measure has been submitted in the United States Congress, proposing to elevate India to the same level as its treaty ally, exempting it from CAATSA sanctions and imposing sanctions on Pakistan for encouraging terrorism in India.
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