The United States has approved a $130 million defense transaction with India, a move that has garnered attention amid increased tensions in South Asia.
The US Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) announced the agreement which includes training and software for marine vision.
The defense agreement, which mainly aims to improve India’s maritime capabilities, won’t upset the regional military balance, according to the US government.
The agreement is anticipated to help stabilize South Asia, a region tainted by protracted political and territorial disputes between nuclear-armed rivals India and Pakistan, according to US officials.
Pakistan, which lately voiced displeasure over India’s provocative moves, is concerned about the arrangement despite Washington’s promises. Tensions between the two nations have increased since the April 22 attack in Pahalgam, Kashmir, which killed local visitors.
Relations have become even more tense as a result of India’s subsequent actions, which include suspending the Indus Water Treaty and expelling diplomatic personnel.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken contacted Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in response to these events. Prime Minister Sharif expressed Pakistan’s worries about India’s provocative conduct over the phone and asked the US to put pressure on New Delhi to defuse the situation.
With over 90,000 lives lost and over $152 billion in economic losses, Prime Minister Sharif emphasized that Pakistan had been at the vanguard of the global battle on terrorism.
Additionally, Sharif denounced India’s confrontational posture, claiming it was an attempt to deflect attention away from Pakistan’s continuous counterterrorism efforts. He identified the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) and Islamic State Khorasan (ISKP), two extremist groups based in Afghanistan, as serious dangers to regional stability.
In reaction to India’s recent measures, Pakistan’s National Security Committee has taken a strong diplomatic stance. The committee reaffirmed Pakistan’s position on the significance of the Indus Water Treaty and restricted India’s diplomatic personnel to 30 members.
