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Manohar Parrikar to visit US next week for pushing key defence ties

India and the US are highly likely to sign the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement

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Defence minister Manohar Parrikar will visit the US next week with key military alliance agendas. According to officials at the Ministry of Defence (MoD), India and the US are highly likely to sign the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA), on which the two nations agreed in principle during the US defence secretary Ashton Carter's visit to New Delhi in April. LEMOA, that will allow sharing of military logistics by using each other's Army, Air Force and Naval bases for supplies, repair and rest was the highlight of Carter's visit and signalled a crucial shift in India's stand on defence ties with the US.

The US has been maintaining that cooperation under the Defence Technology and Trade Initiative (DTTI) can grow if India signs what US calls three foundational agreements – LSA (of which LEMOA is a modified form), and the other two being the Communication and Information Security Memorandum Agreement (CISMOA) and the Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement (BECA).

Even as CISMOA and BECA too will be followed up during the visit, officials said another important agenda during Parrikar's visit will be the Indian Navy's requirements of the Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS) for aircraft carriers as well as the long-range Predator B Guardian surveillance unmanned aircraft or drone. Navy has put an initial requirement of 22 Predators.

Parrikar's visit also coincides with India's lookout for a technologically new set of fighter jets for its air force and two US companies, Boeing and Lockheed Martin pitching hard for it even as the government to government deal on the French Rafale jets is still stuck in negotiations.
India is also on a look out for technology cooperation for its second indigenous aircraft carrier, the 65,000 tonnes INS Vishal. Even as India's first indigenous aircraft, INS Vikrant is in advanced stage of construction, Navy is in the process of finalising the design for INS Vishal, which will be India's largest battleship. India has been eyeing the advanced US aircraft carrier technology for this project.

Eyeing advance technology 
India is also on a look out for technology cooperation for its second indigenous aircraft carrier, the 65,000 tonnes INS Vishal. Even as India's first indigenous aircraft, INS Vikrant is in advanced stage of construction, Navy is in the process of finalising the design for INS Vishal, which will be India's largest battleship. India has been eyeing the advanced US aircraft carrier technology for this project.

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