WASHINGTON, Nov 24 (UNI): A three-day meeting of India and US experts ended here after exchanging views on ways to strengthening cooperation in defense supplies.
Both the sides decided to promote their ongoing industrial and technological exchanges in the military sector.
They also emphasised the importance of service-to-service ties.
In this context, India and US took note of the series of successful joint exercises between the armed forces of both countries including the recently held Cope India 2005 exercise between November 7-17, 2005.
The India-US Defense Policy Group (DPG) meeting that took place in between November 21-23, also included a policy-level dialogue on the global strategic and security situation.
It was co-chaired by Under Secretary of Defense for Policy Eric S Edelman and India's Defense Secretary Shekhar Dutt.
Dutt also called on Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld and held meetings with Under Secretary of Defense (AT&L) Kenneth Krieg and Deputy National Security Advisor Dr J D Crouch.
The DPG included an intensive exchange of views on the international strategic and security situation and on the further development of bilateral defense cooperation as envisaged under the Defense Framework agreed to between US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and the Minister of Defence Pranab Mukherjee on June 28, 2005 in Washington, DC.
Both countries view their bilateral defense cooperation as an important facet of the India-US global partnership, reflected in the India-US Joint Statement of July 18, 2005.
The DPG reviewed the reports of the four sub-groups - Military Cooperation Group, Joint Technology Group, Senior Security Technology Group and Senior Technology Security Group and the Defense Procurement & Production Group (DPPG).