Army Chief to visit US Centcom HQ

[Andross]

The India-US military relationship is set for a qualitative leap with the first ever visit of an Indian Army Chief to the headquarters of the US Central Command (Centcom), which has charge of , the Middle East and Iraq.



Gen. V K Singh will visit the Tampa, Florida-based Command in his 10-day trip to the US between March 6 and 15 with an aim to set up a Brigadier-level direct liaison with the Indian Army. India liaises only with the US Pacific Command, and having a liaison officer in Tampa will signal a recognition of Indian interests in the arc from the Gulf of Aden to the Straits of Malacca, government sources said.



The Centcom liaison and acquisition of M777 ultralight howitzers will figure in the bilateral Defence Policy Group meeting, for which a high-level delegation led by Defence Secretary Pradeep Kumar is going to Washington on March 1. Sources said Gen. Singh will meet Centcom Commander Gen. James Mattis on March 8 to discuss the situation in , the Arab world and Iraq. Gen. Singh will also hold talks with his US counterpart Gen. George W Casey Jr.

Army Chief to visit US Centcom HQ

 

[fatman17]

enjoy the trip!

 

[Andross]

Sounds like something from James bond movie US Centcom HQ

 

[shaktiman2010]

That's a lot of increased worries in China.

I am expecting a lot more rock-painting protests by Chinese army in coming weeks.

 

[shaktiman2010]

Sounds like something from James bond movie US Centcom HQ

True. They spend a lot of energy & efforts to maintain their image.

 

[Andross]

At least we might finally buy those M777 ultralight howitzers its been going on ages

 

[Veeru]

enjoy the trip!

Thanks...these trips are increasing in both side as the cooperation growing day by day. Till few years back no one can expect India accepting american hardware but we have moved till the level of strategic partnership our relations will be on mutual terms of India-US and we will not be a american puppet or used by USA or master-slave relation.

 

[angeldemon_007]

Indian military delegation to talk terrorism with Centcom

With Pakistan-based terror groups playing an increasing role in the insurgency in Afghanistan, a delegation of Indian military leaders is headed to Tampa next week to meet with U.S. Central Command commander Gen. James Mattis and others, according to the Indian Embassy.

The first-ever meeting between Central Command leadership and a group of high-ranking Indian military leaders – led by army chief of staff Gen. V.K. Singh -- reflects the realization that the Taliban and other insurgency groups in Afghanistan increasingly are adopting the terror tactics used by the Lashkar-e-Taiba group against India. The most notable attack by the Lashkar-e-Taiba was the November 2008 raid on a hotel in Mumbai that killed 170 and included American citizens among the dead.

The reason why the two sides have not met before is that although the command oversees U.S. military operations in Afghanistan, Iraq, Pakistan and much of Southwest Asia and the Middle East, it is not charged with dealing with India. That responsibility lies with U.S. Pacific Command.

But given the realities of the insurgency Central Command is charged with fighting, those boundaries are blurring, say experts such as Arturo Munoz, a former CIA official in the region who is now a senior scientist at the Rand Corp.

"You are seeing a different kind of terrorism now in Afghanistan," Munoz said. "For many years, the Taliban did not want to be like al-Qaeda and kill civilians. Now they are. With the involvement of Lashkar-e-Taiba, you are seeing, in a sense, the worsening of terrorism in Afganistan and Pakistan, and that impacts on India."

The Taliban's leadership has long been based in Pakistan, Munoz said. That problem is being exacerbated as Lashkar-e-Taiba grows more brazen in Afghanistan.

A "regional approach to terrorism is being planned," Munoz said, because the "terrorists operate on a regional basis."

Other analysts see the meeting as a growing indicator of U.S. reliance on India.

"India is a very important strategic partner and is playing a very large role in our war in Afghanistan," said Farhana Qazi, an intelligence analyst who provides cultural training to the U.S. government on Pakistan.

Singh is scheduled to meet with Mattis on March 8, according to Manoj Neravath, India Military Wing Adjutant at the Indian Embassy in Washington, D.C.

Central Command officials say they never discuss visiting dignitaries.

Indian military delegation to talk terrorism with Centcom