What is the Singapore Model for Military-Industrial Relations with the United States that New Delhi is adopting?

There were numerous deals that took place between India and the United States, one of them being the “Sustainment and Ship Repair”. The United States Navy has concluded with the Larsen and Toubro Shipyard at Kattupalli, south of Chennai, a Master Ship Repair Agreement (MSRA). The United States is eager to finalize such deals with Goa Shipyard and Mazagon Dock Limited in Mumbai.

As a part of these agreements, the United States naval ships can put if for the purpose of repairs and service at these shipyards.

Importance of Master Ship Repair Agreement

The Master Ship Repair Agreement is a significant building block in the defense industrial relationship between the United States and India. The two countries are going for negotiations undertaken for a Security of Supply Arrangement and a Reciprocal Defense Procurement Arrangement. This will make the supply of defense goods in cases of unanticipated supply chain issues.

Both these involve the stockpiling of goods in Indian facilities. These also involve the expansion of the base of suppliers and producers of defense goods required by the United States to include Indian companies.

After the signing of the agreements, the manufacturers from India would be able to interact with equipment manufacturers from the USA and become contractors and suppliers for the Pentagon Military Industry orders.

The Reciprocal Defense Procurement Arrangement offers exemptions from laws of America making federal procurements mandate from the United States companies only.

The MSRA complements the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA) of the year 2016 too. The LEMOA offers access to both nations to designated facilities of the military to either side for replenishment and fuel. The mechanism for bookkeeping and payments is an essential aspect of this. The Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement is limited to cases arising from joint exercises, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR), port calls, and more.

The steps discussed are going to come under the freshly finalized US- India Defense Cooperation strategy that will be offering policy directions to defense industries, while also enabling the co-production of defense systems. It will also establish a setup for the purpose of collaborative research, as well as prototyping of the developed technologies. 

The widening of Indo-US cooperation currently undergoing is seen as a result of the four foundational agreements signed between the two countries since 2002. These four agreements are-

the 2020 Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement for Geospatial Cooperation (BECA), the 2018 Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement (COMCASA), the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (2016), the  General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA) in 2002.