US commander meets Indian military chiefs
COMMANDER of the US Indo-Pacific Command Admiral John Aquilino last week held separate talks with India’s Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and chiefs of armed forces with a focus on the situation in the Indo-Pacific and the conflict in Ukraine.
Admiral Aquilino was in India to participate in the Raisina Dialogue, India’s premier foreign policy and geo-economics conference.
On Wednesday (27), he met Singh and Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar, and a day later held discussions with Air Force Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari and Gen MM Naravane, who retired as Army Chief on April 30.
Officials said the major security challenges emanating from China’s increasing assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific and implications of the Ukraine crisis for regional security figured in Admiral Aquilino’s talks with service chiefs.
‘Defence cooperation has been a critical element of Indo-US relations. Towards ensuring free, open and inclusive Indo-Pacific, both the Admirals discussed avenues to further enhance the existing cooperation between two navies through capability enhancement and cooperative engagements,’ said an Indian Navy official.
In an interactive session at the Raisina Dialogue, Admiral Aquilino extensively referred to the conflict in Ukraine and said it is time for like-minded countries to prepare with a ‘sense of urgency’ to deal with similar challenges.
‘We are all concerned about what we watched in Ukraine. We watched unprovoked action to generate a war. This is a very concerning time as I look through the lens of global security,’ he said.
The top American commander also talked about the ‘no limits’ friendship between Russia and China and said it was a matter of great concern.
Admiral Aquilino said like-minded countries must develop ‘great deterrence’ by utilising all forms of technology and national power in all domains.
‘We need to prepare with a sense of urgency,’ he said describing the Russian attack on Ukraine as the ‘most dangerous time in my lifetime’.
The commander said there was a need for the countries in the Indo-Pacific to work together to deal with coercion.
Admiral Aquilino said that the NATO is increasing its strength in view of the Russian actions against Ukraine. He also suggested that it could be a good model for the Indo-Pacific.