U.S. House Passes Legislation Championed By Congressman Krishnamoorthi To Strengthen The U.S.-India Defense Partnership Through Expanded Cooperation In Areas Including Research, Training, Contracting, And Intelligence

WASHINGTON – In response to the Thursday passage of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), which included provisions to “enhance major defense partnership” between the United States and India and to “ensure that India is appropriately considered for cooperative defense activities consistent with the status of India as a major defense partner,” Congressman Krishnamoorthi issued the following statement:

“I was proud to champion efforts to pass this legislation to support American security commitments including provisions to strengthen our defense partnership with India through expanded opportunities for cooperation in research and development, training, intelligence, counterterrorism, and military contracting. As we take the steps necessary to win the strategic competition with the Chinese Communist Party and maintain the security of the Indo-Pacific region against aggression, it is essential that we strengthen our ties to our allies and security partners, including through the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue. Strengthening the U.S.-India partnership and ensuring India is properly considered for cooperative defense activities will not only bring greater security to the world’s largest democracy and its oldest, but also to the wider world.”

Cooperative defense activities for which India will be considered with the passage of the NDAA into law include eligibility for funding for joint research and development, testing, training, and for Indian entities to bid on contracts for Department of Defense equipment outside of the United States. Further, the provisions allow for the United States and India to enter into agreements for bilateral and multilateral training to build capacity in activities including military intelligence, counterterrorism, anti-drug trafficking, maritime security, and air domain awareness. Separately, the NDAA includes the Indo-Pacific Maritime Domain Awareness Initiative which would establish a partnership with allies and partners of the United States, including Australia, Japan, and India, which would “bolster maritime domain awareness in the Indo-Pacific region” to strengthen regional maritime security and cooperation.

The inclusion of provisions to strengthen the United States’ partnership with India in the annual defense act follows a policy recommendation to expand such ties, which was passed by the House Select Committee on the Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party earlier this year under Congressman Krishnamoorthi’s leadership as the committee’s Ranking Member.