India and US: 2+2 Dialogue

Context

Recently held 2+2 dialogue brought signing pact on Defence cooperation between India and US.

Background

Both the countries, India and United States signed the crucial Indo-US Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement (BECA), which pertains to geo-spatial intelligence, sharing information on maps and satellite images for defence purposes. India's External Affairs Minister and Defence Minister held the third edition of the 2+2 talks with US counterparts.

A very comprehensive discussions took place on a range of key issues including territorial integrity and sovereignty . Inking of BECA with US is a significant move towards greater cooperation and boosting bilateral relationship. Military to military cooperation with the US moving forward very well. Simultaneously both countries reaffirmed their commitment to peace and security in Indo-Pacific region.

2+2 Dialogue

A ‘two plus two dialogue’ is a term adopted in foreign parleys, used for installation of a dialogue mechanism between two country’s defence and external affairs ministries. To put it simply, ‘two plus two dialogue is an expression used to indicate that two appointed ministers from each country, the ministers of defence and external affairs in this case, will meet up to discuss the two countries’ strategic and security interests. The goal is to establish a diplomatic, yet fruitful, conversation between the two countries’ respective heads of defence and external affairs.

Japan is known to draw from the format ‘two plus two dialogue’ has to offer for years now. Japan leans on this mechanism for its interactions with the US, France, Russia and Australia. India, on the other hand, has established the 2+2 dialogue primarily with Japan.

Journey of the Dialogue

The inaugural India-US 2+2 dialogue witnessed the two sides committing to start exchanges between the US Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT) and the Indian Navy. This was crucial with regards to India and the US aligning their conceptions over the relevance of the north-west Indian Ocean region under the Indo-Pacific construct.

The second meet of the 2+2 dialogue oversaw the finalisation of the Industrial Security Annex (ISA) to facilitate the exchange of classified military information between Indian and the US defence industries. The same is an important step towards the long-belated actualisation of the Obama-era Defence Technology and Trade Initiative’s (DTTI) goal of graduating India-US defence ties towards co-production and co-development.

Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement

BECA largely pertains to geospatial intelligence, and sharing information on maps and satellite images for defence. According to officials, anyone who sails a ship, flies an aircraft, fights wars, locates targets, responds to natural disasters, or even navigates with a cell phone relies on geospatial intelligence.

Signing BECA enables India to use the US’s advanced geospatial intelligence and enhance the accuracy of automated systems and weapons like missiles and armed drones. It will give access to topographical and aeronautical data and products that will aid navigation and targeting.

BECA will provide Indian military systems with a high-quality GPS to navigate and missiles with real-time intelligence to precisely target the adversary. This could be key for Air Force-to-Air Force cooperation.

Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement

LEMOA was signed between India and the US in August 2016. It allows the military of each country to replenish from the other’s bases to access supplies, spare parts and services from the other country’s land facilities, air bases, and ports, which can then be reimbursed. This is extremely useful for Navy-to-Navy cooperation, since the US and India are cooperating closely in the Indo-Pacific.

In military terms, one’s Naval ships are strategic assets and use of another country’s base would expose one’s military asset to the host.

If signing LEMOA needed trust, its application enhances the trust. It took almost a decade to negotiate LEMOA.

Former diplomats say that while India had provided logistics support ad hoc in the past re-fuelling of American aircraft in Bombay during the first Gulf War in 1991, visits by US ships to Indian ports during the war against terrorism after 9/11— the signing of LEMOA has made it a smoother process.

Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement

COMCASA was signed in September 2018, after the first 2+2 dialogue. It allows the US to provide India with its encrypted communications equipment and systems so that Indian and US military commanders, aircraft and ships can communicate through secure networks in peace and war.

COMCASA paved the way for transfer of communication security equipment from the US to India to facilitate “interoperability” between their forces and potentially with other militaries that use US-origin systems for secure data links.

All these Foundational Agreements started from the General Security Of Military Information Agreements (GSOMIA) signed in 2002 to enable the sharing of classified data between Government entities, serve as a framework for cooperation and interoperability between the US military and international partners such as India.

Significance of These Agreements

Amid the longest stand-off on the India-China border in three decades, India and the US have intensified under-the-radar intelligence and military cooperation at an unprecedented level.

These conversations have facilitated information-sharing between security, military and intelligence branches of the two countries almost reminiscent of the Indo-US cooperation of the 1960s, especially after the 1962 war. The cooperation includes sharing of high-end satellite images, telephone intercepts, and data sharing of Chinese troops and weapons deployment along the 3,488 km Line of Actual Control (LAC). Sources said that by using these US technologies, India is watching the Chinese movements in all sectors of the LAC.

The Indian defence establishment also has enhanced capability with some American equipment. The armed forces have used at least five American platforms at the LAC, C-17 Globemaster III for military transport, Boeing’s Chinook CH-47 as heavy-lift helicopters, Boeing’s Apache as tank-killers, P-8I Poseidon for overland reconnaissance, and Lockheed Martin’s C-130J for airlifting troops.

Conclusion

While LEMOA means one partner trusts the other enough to expose its valuable assets, COMCASA means one is confident that it can rely on encrypted systems to connect the two militaries, and BECA means it can share highly classified information in real time without fear of being compromised. All this signals the level of trust that has developed between the two countries and their militaries, faced with an increasingly aggressive China.

The achievements of the 2+2 dialogue, including the BECA geo-spatial cooperation agreement, add to a successful partnership, during which our two nations deepened the Quad framework with Japan and Australia, and welcomed Australia into the quadrilateral maritime Exercise Malabar. With these key defence pacts in place, cooperation can happen in a more structured and efficient way, rather than episodic.

Connecting the Article

Question for Prelims: Consider the following statements:

1. LEMOA enables Indian and US defence forces to access each other defence facilities to carry out repairs and for resupplying.
2. GSOMIA enables sharing military intelligence between India and the USA.
3. COMCASA provides encrypted communication exchange between India and US.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?

(a) 1 and 2 only
(b) 2 and 3 only
(c) 1 and 3 only
(d) 1, 2 and 3

Question for Mains: Discuss the significance of deepening defence ties between India and the United States, in the context of current security challenges for India.