US India relationship is global in scope: Pentagon

WASHINGTON: India is key part of efforts of Obama Administration to rebalance its Asia-Pacific posture to the broader security and prosperity of the 21st century, a top Pentagon official said, adding India-US relationship is global in scope.

"India is also key part of our rebalance to the Asia-Pacific, and, we believe, to the broader security and prosperity of the 21st century.

"The US-India relationship is global in scope, like the reach and influence of both countries," the Deputy Secretary of Defense, Ashton Carter, said in his address to the Asia Society in New York yesterday.

"Our security interests converge: on maritime security, across the Indian Ocean region; in Afghanistan, where India has done so much for economic development and the Afghan security forces; and on broader regional issues, where we share long-term interests," said Carter who returned last week from his 10-day Asia Pacific trip including India.

"I went to India at the request of Secretary Panetta with a high-level delegation of U S technical and policy experts.Our purpose was to work with the Indians on developing a joint vision for US-India defense cooperation," he said.

"Through a series of meetings with Indian government and industry leaders, we agreed to create a continuing working mechanism, with the strategic engagement of National Security Advisor (Shiv Shankar) Menon and myself, to implement our vision," Carter said.

"We believe that the only limit to our cooperation should be our independent strategic decisions - as any two states can differ - not bureaucratic obstacles or inefficient procedures.

"So we are deepening relationships between our defense organizations, from research to defense sales," the top Pentagon official said.