Describing India as an incredibly important country in the region and the largest democracy in the world, US Assistant Secretary of State for the Political-Military Bureau, Jessica Lewis, on Tuesday said that Washington offers New Delhi a choice when it comes to deepening and strengthening their security relationship.
"We have deepened and strengthened our relationship with India, the largest democracy in the world, an incredibly important country in the region, and we are continuing to do so," Lewis told Defense Writers Group.
"I think the way we see it is we offer India a choice when it comes to deepening and strengthening their security relationship with us. I feel very good about where that is going. Obviously, they have a long history of course, but I think we are making very good progress on that front," she added.
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Lewis also addressed the diversification of weapons in the wake of the Ukrainian war, stating that countries are looking for alternatives to Russian equipment. Many countries have expressed concern about Russia's ability to continue providing military equipment, and there are growing questions about the quality of the equipment being provided.
"We are seeing countries coming to us and saying look, we may need to diversify in ways that they haven’t before, off Russian equipment. Mainly because they are seeing the failure of Russia and Soviet doctrine in the war, but also raising questions about the equipment that Russia is providing and Russia’s ability to keep providing that equipment,” she said.
“We think that this moment in time presents an opportunity for us to look at the question of as countries are becoming interested in the transition off Russian equipment both for the U.S. and for our partners and allies it does make sense for us to offer countries a choice. I think that's how we're thinking about it. We’re offering countries a choice," she said.
Lewis emphasized that this presents an opportunity for the U.S. to offer countries a choice and to help them transition away from Russian equipment. She also noted that having a strong security cooperation relationship with the U.S. offers benefits that go beyond just security and military equipment. This type of relationship also helps to deepen ties and facilitate conversations on important issues such as human rights.
“We think that this moment in time presents an opportunity for us to look at the question of as countries are becoming interested in the transition off Russian equipment both for the U.S. and for our partners and allies it does make sense for us to offer countries a choice. I think that's how we're thinking about it. We’re offering countries a choice," she added.
