Nationalism Made In USA

Defence cooperation is part of India’s increasing subordination to US geostrategy

- Prakash Karat

Kenneth Juster, the US Ambassador to India, in his first public speech, has suggested that military liaison officers be posted on a reciprocal basis in the two countries’ “combatant commands”.  This is not a new issue, as the United States has been urging the Indian government since 2002 to post a liaison officer at the Pacific Command headquarters in Hawaii.  It is the Pacific Command which covers the whole area of the Asia-Pacific up to India.  The Vajpayee government did not reject the proposal then but wanted an off­icer posted with Central Command.

What is, however, new is the proposal to do so on a reciprocal basis, which means that there would also be an American military ­officer posted at an Indian Command headquarters.  

That the US Ambassador has raised this issue at this juncture indicates that the Americans are more hopeful that this ­request will not be shelved as in the past.  After all, military cooperation, which is at the heart of the US-India strategic ­alliance, has made significant progress under the Modi government.