ABSTRACT
The real foundation of India–United States (US) defense cooperation was laid down through the Kicklighter Proposals of 1991 after the end of the Cold War. These proposals enabled the first-ever military-to-military exercises between two countries and included service-to-service exchanges and expansion of a defense cooperation framework. Based on same convergence of interests outlined in 2005 framework, the importance of the defense relationship was enhanced from an “element” to a “vital pillar of engagement” between two countries. It aimed at the identification of hurdles in defense cooperation and induction of remedial mechanisms to overcome these hurdles. Understanding the slow pace of bilateral defense cooperation, the 2015 framework provided a detailed mechanism to speed it up. Due to multifarious mutual interests in newly emerging international political environment, India and US have come significantly closer to each other. Both states developed their relations in a short time span over the last decade to the extent that they agreed to build a “global partnership”.
