The government on Monday said it has denied a recent assertion made by US Pacific Command Chief Admiral Robert Willard regarding the presence of United States special forces in India.
The Communist Party of India Marxist on Saturday raised questions about the alleged presence of American Special Forces in India. The party pointed out that Commander of the US Pacific Command Admiral Robert Willard had stated at a Congressional hearing that American Special forces assist teams are stationed in India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and the Maldives. But the ministry of external affairs and the ministry of defence have both denied his claims.
United States Special forces teams are currently stationed in five South Asian countries including India as part of the counter-terrorism co-operation with these nations, a top Pentagon commander has disclosed.
"We have a special focus area on our relationship with India -- a strategic partnership that continues to grow, both government-to-government and military-to-military. India is the largest democracy in South Asia. It's the most consequential military in the region," he said.
"India's historic leadership of the non-alignment movement and desire to maintain strategic autonomy somewhat constrain cooperation at a level USPACOM (US Pacific Command) desires," the US Pacific Command Commander Admiral Robert Willard said in his testimony before House Armed Services Committee.
The buildup of Chinese armed forces is continuing 'unabated' and Beijing's goals appears to be power projection beyond Asia and to challenge America's freedom of action in the region, a top US admiral has said.
Admiral Robert Willard, Commander of the US Pacific Command, has said that Indo-US military relations are now robust but acknowledged that there is still a lot to overcome in terms of inter-operability, which comes from a lack of acquaintance with one another.
Navy chief Admiral Nirmal Verma will be on a 10-day visit to the United States beginning Thursday where he will meet the defence top brass to discuss furthering of relations between the two militaries.
'A strong positive relationship with India is essential to achieving long-term US goals such as regional security and stability, reduced tensions with Pakistan, and wide-ranging cooperation to counter extremism,' Admiral Robert Willard, said in his confirmation hearing for Commander of US Pacific Command.
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