Sr US official bats for India def ties, says Pak an imp South Asia partner

S Paul Kapur, assistant secretary, Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, testified to the US Congress on February 11 on the Trump administration's South Asia Policy.

Kapur laid down the key US priorities in the region and said that his focus would be on expanding trade relationships with South Asian nations, along with increasing defence co-operation and targeted investment.

Beyond energy, Kapur highlighted expanding defence cooperation as another pillar of the relationship. He pointed to potential US weapon system sales "in the pipeline" that would help India protect its sovereignty while also supporting American manufacturing jobs. Such deals "are not only transactional but strategically significant".


Kapur said that a capable and self-reliant India "takes a huge swathe of the Indo-Pacific off China's plate".

However, what would be an irritant in India-USA ties, Kapur described Pakistan as "another important partner" in the region.

He spoke of "working to realise the potential of critical mineral resources" and counterterrorism cooperation that helps combat Pakistan's internal threats and Pakistan-based transnational terror threats.