US Says It Is Building On Strong Defence Relationship With India
The United States is building on its strong defence relationship with India, citing New Delhi’s regional standing and power, according to an update on the implementation of the 2026 US National Defence Strategy submitted to the Senate Armed Services Committee.
The reference to India comes as Washington seeks to increase burden-sharing with allies and partners, a central element of the strategy. The latest update highlights India’s growing role in US regional partnerships and points to deeper military coordination and cooperation in the Indo-Pacific.
“Finally, and crucially given its regional standing and power, we are also building on our strong defence relationship with India, with the recent signature of a 10-year bilateral defence framework and a separate framework to strengthen undersea cooperation,” the update said.
US Undersecretary of Defence Elbridge Colby said on Tuesday that the update had been submitted to the Senate Armed Services Committee the previous week. He said the US Department of Defence had made significant progress in implementing the priorities outlined in the 2026 National Defence Strategy.
The strategy focuses on the defence of the US homeland, deterring China in the Indo-Pacific through strength rather than confrontation, increasing burden-sharing with allies and partners, and strengthening the US defence industrial base.
The US and India signed a 10-year Defence Framework in October last year aimed at deepening military cooperation and strengthening regional security across the Indo-Pacific. The agreement was reached during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s meeting with US President Donald Trump at the White House in February last year.
The latest update also refers to a separate framework to strengthen undersea cooperation between Washington and New Delhi. The two developments are being highlighted by the US as part of its broader effort to deepen defence partnerships and increase the contribution of allies and partners to regional security.
The 2026 National Defence Strategy, released in January, did not mention India or the Quad grouping. The implementation update now specifically identifies India in the context of Washington’s efforts to strengthen its regional partnerships.
The NDS is submitted to the US Congress once every four years and contains an unclassified summary of the priority missions of the US military, the strategic environment assumed by the administration and enduring threats to US security.
Colby said the Department of Defence had made progress on the strategy’s guidance covering homeland defence, deterrence of China in the Indo-Pacific, greater burden-sharing with allies and partners and strengthening the US defence industrial base.
He said the US was also increasing the collective ability of Washington and its partners to deter or defeat threats to shared interests across multiple theatres, including in the event of simultaneous conflicts.
“Far more work remains to be done, however and congressional support will be vital to our nation’s success,” Colby said, describing President Trump’s USD 1.5 trillion FY27 budget request as essential to sustaining the momentum built since the NDS was released.
The latest update therefore places India within the US effort to deepen defence cooperation and expand burden-sharing with partners, with the 10-year defence framework and undersea cooperation emerging as key elements of the relationship.