India and the US have signed a Security of Supply Arrangement (SOSA) and Memorandum of Agreement regarding the Assignment of Liaison Officers, the latest in a series of bilateral military agreements that have enhanced defence and security cooperation between the two countries over the past decade.
Two new agreements
SOSA:
The US and India will provide reciprocal priority support to each other for goods and services that promote national defence.
It will enable both countries to acquire the industrial resources they need from one another to resolve unanticipated supply chain disruptions to meet national security needs.
India is the 18th SOSA partner of the US.
While SOSA, according to the DoD, are an important mechanism to strengthen interoperability with US defence trade partners, it is legally non-binding.
The DoD has been working to conclude another agreement with India, the Reciprocal Defence Procurement (RDP) Agreement, which will be binding.
MoU On Liaison Officers:
The Memorandum of Agreement regarding the Assignment of Liaison Officers is a progression on a decision taken earlier to increase information-sharing between India and the US, and to post Indian armed forces officers in key strategic US Commands.
India will deploy the first Liaison Officer to the US Special Operations Command headquarters in Florida.
Reciprocal Defence Procurement (RDP) Agreement:
A Reciprocal Defence Procurement (RDP) Agreement between the US and India is being discussed but has not yet been finalized.
These are intended to improve defense equipment interoperability, standardization, interchangeability, and rationalization between the United States and its allies.
Up until now, the US has signed RDP Agreements with 28 nations.
With this deal, US corporations would be able to get around some procurement constraints, such India's "Make in India" effort, which would make it easier to build manufacturing bases in India and work more closely with local businesses.
India and the US had signed the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA) in 2022 to facilitate sharing of military information. Between 2016 and 2020, the two sides signed four more agreements.
The US designated India as a Major Defence Partner in 2022. Commensurate with this designation, in 2018, India was elevated to Strategic Trade Authorisation tier 1 status, which gave it licence-free access to a range of military and dual-use technologies regulated by the US Department of Commerce.
The Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA) of 2016 established the basic terms, conditions, and procedures for reciprocal provision of logistic support, supplies, and services between the two militaries.
COMCASA, an India-specific version of the Communications and Information Security Memorandum of Agreement (CISMOA), was signed in 2018 to secure military communication between the countries, facilitate access to advanced defence systems, and enable India to optimally utilise its existing US-origin platforms.
The Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement (BECA) of 2020 aimed to facilitate the sharing of military information including maps, nautical charts, and other unclassified imagery and data.
In January 2023, the US-India initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET) was discussed to expand the strategic technology partnership and defence industrial cooperation.
