On July 1, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth met with India's Minister of External Affairs S. Jaishankar to discuss the Major Defense Partnership between the United States and India, and the close cooperation between the two countries embodied in the February 2025 Joint Statement by President Trump and Prime Minister Modi. Noting mutual concern about the danger of aggression in the Asia-Pacific region, the two reviewed pending major defense sales, the forthcoming signing of the next 10 Year Defense Framework, and progress on advanced technology policy reviews. Secretary Hegseth and Minister Jaishankar welcomed the next INDUS-X Summit, a bilateral defense tech forum, and the accompanying launch of the Autonomous Systems Industry Alliance (ASIA).
Secretary Hegseth looks forward to future high-level bilateral meetings with India later this year in order to continue building the dynamic U.S.-India defense relationship.
