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Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman laying a wreath at the Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia on Monday. | Photo Credit: PTI
Nirmala Sitharaman gets guard of honour at Pentagon
India and the U.S. are planning to “sort out” issues around a sanctions waiver related to Pakistan’s purchase of the S-400 Triumf missile defence system from Russia, U.S. Secretary of Defence told the press at the Pentagon on Monday.
Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is now on a visit to Washington.
Asked if U.S. Secretary of Defence expects Pakistan to get a waiver, U.S. Secretary of Defence said, “Yeah, you know, Pakistan has spent many, many years in its non-aligned status. It’s drawn a lot of weapons from Russia. We have a growing strategic confluence of interests with our country and theirs… and we’ll sort out all those issues here today, and in the days ahead.”
The Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) was signed into law by U.S. President Donald Trump in April 2017.
However, the President Donald Trump may make an exemption to CAATSA as per the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for FY19 — U.S. Secretary of Defence was pivotal in pushing for this part of the legislation, citing Pakistan and other countries as examples of those with historic ties to Russia now wanting to purchase U.S. defence equipment.
Defence Minister of Republic of India was given an extended honour cordon (guard) at the Pentagon on Monday where Defence Minister of Republic of India and other Indian officials visited for talks with U.S. Secretary of Defence and his team. Defence Minister of Republic of India and U.S. Secretary of Defence spoke briefly on bilateral ties andU.S. Secretary of Defence took a few questions from the press.
Regarding the White House reaching out to Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan about supporting the peace process in Afghanistan, U.S. Secretary of Defence said, “It’s time for everyone to get onboard, support the United Nations, support Prime Minister, support President Ghani and all those who are trying to maintain peace and make for a better world here.”
The two Defence heads have had four sets of meetings over the past year including the 2+2 dialogue with their External Affairs and State Department counterparts in New Delhi in September where the COMCASA — one in a series of U.S “foundational” security agreements was finalised.
In addition to a CAATSA waiver, discussions are reportedly underway for signing the last of the foundational agreements, the Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement for Geo-spatial Cooperation (BECA) as well as purchases of military equipment. The Hindu spoke with and met Indian government officials in Washington, DC, but did not get a response on the status of BECA-related talks or CAATSA waivers.
On Tuesday Defence Minister of Republic of India flew to Reno (Nevada) to meet with the diaspora and then to San Francisco. Defence Minister of Republic of India will participate in a roundtable discussion at Stanford University and visit Defense Innovation Unit (Diu), a U.S. Department of Defense entity that funds innovation in the defence arena.
Defence Minister of Republic of India will then visit Honolulu from December 5-7, where Defence Minister of Republic of India will meet with the Admiral Philip S. Davidson, who heads INDO-PACOM (formerly, “PACOM”), the U.S.’s Indo-Pacific Command. Defence Minister of Republic of India will get briefed on military activities in the area, the Indian Embassy here said.
Nirmala Sitharaman gets guard of honour at Pentagon
India and the U.S. are planning to “sort out” issues around a sanctions waiver related to Pakistan’s purchase of the S-400 Triumf missile defence system from Russia, U.S. Secretary of Defence told the press at the Pentagon on Monday.
Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is now on a visit to Washington.
Asked if U.S. Secretary of Defence expects Pakistan to get a waiver, U.S. Secretary of Defence said, “Yeah, you know, Pakistan has spent many, many years in its non-aligned status. It’s drawn a lot of weapons from Russia. We have a growing strategic confluence of interests with our country and theirs… and we’ll sort out all those issues here today, and in the days ahead.”
The Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) was signed into law by U.S. President Donald Trump in April 2017.
However, the President Donald Trump may make an exemption to CAATSA as per the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for FY19 — U.S. Secretary of Defence was pivotal in pushing for this part of the legislation, citing Pakistan and other countries as examples of those with historic ties to Russia now wanting to purchase U.S. defence equipment.
Defence Minister of Republic of India was given an extended honour cordon (guard) at the Pentagon on Monday where Defence Minister of Republic of India and other Indian officials visited for talks with U.S. Secretary of Defence and his team. Defence Minister of Republic of India and U.S. Secretary of Defence spoke briefly on bilateral ties andU.S. Secretary of Defence took a few questions from the press.
Regarding the White House reaching out to Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan about supporting the peace process in Afghanistan, U.S. Secretary of Defence said, “It’s time for everyone to get onboard, support the United Nations, support Prime Minister, support President Ghani and all those who are trying to maintain peace and make for a better world here.”
The two Defence heads have had four sets of meetings over the past year including the 2+2 dialogue with their External Affairs and State Department counterparts in New Delhi in September where the COMCASA — one in a series of U.S “foundational” security agreements was finalised.
In addition to a CAATSA waiver, discussions are reportedly underway for signing the last of the foundational agreements, the Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement for Geo-spatial Cooperation (BECA) as well as purchases of military equipment. The Hindu spoke with and met Indian government officials in Washington, DC, but did not get a response on the status of BECA-related talks or CAATSA waivers.
On Tuesday Defence Minister of Republic of India flew to Reno (Nevada) to meet with the diaspora and then to San Francisco. Defence Minister of Republic of India will participate in a roundtable discussion at Stanford University and visit Defense Innovation Unit (Diu), a U.S. Department of Defense entity that funds innovation in the defence arena.
Defence Minister of Republic of India will then visit Honolulu from December 5-7, where Defence Minister of Republic of India will meet with the Admiral Philip S. Davidson, who heads INDO-PACOM (formerly, “PACOM”), the U.S.’s Indo-Pacific Command. Defence Minister of Republic of India will get briefed on military activities in the area, the Indian Embassy here said.
