The US has eased export controls for the sale of high-tech products to India, granting it the same access as NATO allies, Australia, Japan and South Korea, US Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross said on Monday.
Ross, speaking at a US Chamber of Commerce event, said the move to grant Strategic Trade Authorization status STA1 to India reflects its efforts to improve its own export-control regime, its adherence to multilateral export rules and its growing status as a US defense partner.
“STA1 provides India greater supply chain efficiency, both for defense and for other high-tech products,” Ross said, adding that the elevated status would have affected about US$9.7 billion of Indian goods purchases over the past seven years.
Indian Ambassador to the US Navtej Sarna told the same forum that the US move was a logical step after the US designated India a major defense partner in 2016.
“It is a sign of trust, not only in the relationship, but also [in] India’s capabilities as an economy and as a security partner, because it also presupposes that India has the multilateral export control regime in place which would allow the transfer of more sensitive defense technologies,” he said.
“It also testifies to the excellent record we have had in maintaining non-proliferation of these technologies,” he said. “I certainly think it fleshes out our defense partnership in a big way.”
Political and military ties between the countries have expanded significantly in the past few years although trade differences have arisen since US President Donald Trump took office last year.
Ross’ announcement comes ahead of high-level talks between the US and India next month that are to be attended by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and US Secretary of Defense James Mattis. The Sept. 6 talks have been postponed twice this year.
India and the US share an interest in countering China’s expanding economic and military weight and the US has emerged as a top arms supplier to India, selling more than US$15 billion of weapons over the past decade as New Delhi modernizes its Soviet-era military.
Washington has offered India the armed version of drones that were originally authorized for sale as unarmed and for surveillance purposes. If the deal comes to fruition, it would be the first time the US has sold a large armed drone to a country outside of NATO.
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