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The Pentagon renames its oldest and largest military command to reflect the growing importance of the Indian Ocean in US strategic thinking
US Pacific Command, which is responsible for all US military activity in the greater Pacific region, has about 375,000 civilian and military personnel assigned to its area of responsibility, which includes India.
“Relationships with our Pacific and Indian Ocean allies and partners have proven critical to maintaining regional stability,” US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis said in prepared remarks.
“In recognition of the increasing connectivity between the Indian and Pacific Oceans, today we rename the US Pacific Command to US Indo-Pacific Command,” Mattis said.
He was speaking during a change-of-command ceremony. Admiral Philip Davidson was assuming leadership of the command from Admiral Harry Harris, who is US President Donald Trump’s nominee to be ambassador to South Korea.
“To our allies here in the Indo-Pacific, you will have no better ally,” Davidson said.
“To our partners, I look forward to advancing our partnership in a way that serves our mutual interests. To our friends, our friendship is rock solid. We must continue to work together. Peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific relies directly on these bonds.”
The renaming does not mean additional assets will be sent to the region at this time, but rather recognises India’s increasing military relevance for the United States.
In 2016, the United States and India signed an agreement governing the use of each other’s land, air and naval bases for repair and resupply, a step toward building defence ties as they seek to counter the growing maritime assertiveness of China.
Recent years have seen China emerge as a major regional power.
In 2017, it opened its first overseas naval base in Djibouti and has strengthened ties with several regional countries including Pakistan, Sri Lanka and the Maldives.
And Beijing is pursuing its “Belt and Road” global infrastructure initiative that invests in Southeast Asian countries but which US critics say is based on “predatory” economics.
“The Indo-Pacific has many belts and many roads,” Mattis said.
The United States is also keen to tap into India’s large defence market. It has emerged as India’s No. 2 weapons supplier, closing US$15 billion worth of deals over the last decade.
Mattis has been pushing for a waiver for countries like India, after Trump signed a law last year which said that any country trading with Russia’s defence and intelligence sectors would face sanctions.
“I think India and the relationship with the United States is the potentially most historic opportunity we have in the 21st-century and I intend to pursue that quite rigorously,” Davidson, the incoming head of the command, said last month.
However, experts said the name change would mean little unless it was tied to a broader strategy.
“Renaming PACOM is ultimately a symbolic act … (it) will have a very limited impact unless the US follows through with a significant array of initiatives and investments that reflect a wider aperture,” said Abraham Denmark, a former deputy assistant secretary of defence for East Asia under President Barack Obama.
http://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-...india-us-military-renames-its-pacific-command
American Raj? Pentagon renames PACOM to ‘Indo-Pacific Command’
Say goodbye to the Pacific Command and hello to the US Indo-Pacific Command: the Pentagon has renamed the US military’s largest geographical component to reflect growing overtures from Washington to India.
“Relationships with our Pacific and Indian Ocean allies and partners have proven critical to maintaining regional stability,”US Defense Secretary James Mattis said on Wednesday. “In recognition of the increasing connectivity between the Indian and Pacific Oceans, today we rename the US Pacific Command to US Indo-Pacific Command.”
Mattis made the announcement at the change of command ceremony in Hawaii, where Admiral Philip Davidson took over the duties from Admiral Harry Harris, nominated to be the next US ambassador to South Korea.
The name change is regarded as largely symbolic. India is already considered part of PACOM’s area of responsibility, which also includes China, Mongolia, Southeast Asia, Australia, Antarctica and the entire Pacific Ocean.
The US has been pushing for stronger military relations with India since 2016, however, when the two countries signed an agreement governing the use of military bases for repair and resupply. The deal was part of the Obama administration’s “pivot to Asia” strategy aimed at countering China’s growing military strength. India regards China as a regional rival, and the two countries have clashed in the past over border disputes in the Himalayas.
Read more
US advises India to consider consequences of purchasing Russia’s S-400 systems
The Trump administration has sought to replace Russia as India’s top supplier of military equipment. While Washington has sold $15 billion worth of weapons and equipment to India over the past decade, New Delhi has preferred to buy big-ticket items from Moscow, from jet fighters and submarines to the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya.
Washington has also tried to stop India from buying S-400 air defense systems from Russia. The purchase would “complicate interoperability” with US forces and “limit... the degree with which the United States will feel comfortable in bringing additional technology”into India, House Armed Services Committee chairman Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) told Indian media on Wednesday.
If India goes ahead with the purchase of the S-400, this could jeopardize the deal to acquire US-made Predator drones, Thornberry said. The US has banned sales of military equipment to countries that buy weapons from Russia, as part of a sanctions effort to “isolate” Moscow.
Meanwhile, New Delhi has also been negotiating with Tehran to bypass US-linked banks and not use dollars in oil transactions, thus avoiding the US sanctions imposed on Iran in the wake of the Trump administration’s decision to exit the 2015 JCPOA nuclear deal.
https://www.rt.com/usa/428295-indo-pacific-command-pentagon/
US Pacific Command, which is responsible for all US military activity in the greater Pacific region, has about 375,000 civilian and military personnel assigned to its area of responsibility, which includes India.
“Relationships with our Pacific and Indian Ocean allies and partners have proven critical to maintaining regional stability,” US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis said in prepared remarks.
“In recognition of the increasing connectivity between the Indian and Pacific Oceans, today we rename the US Pacific Command to US Indo-Pacific Command,” Mattis said.
He was speaking during a change-of-command ceremony. Admiral Philip Davidson was assuming leadership of the command from Admiral Harry Harris, who is US President Donald Trump’s nominee to be ambassador to South Korea.
“To our allies here in the Indo-Pacific, you will have no better ally,” Davidson said.
“To our partners, I look forward to advancing our partnership in a way that serves our mutual interests. To our friends, our friendship is rock solid. We must continue to work together. Peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific relies directly on these bonds.”
The renaming does not mean additional assets will be sent to the region at this time, but rather recognises India’s increasing military relevance for the United States.
In 2016, the United States and India signed an agreement governing the use of each other’s land, air and naval bases for repair and resupply, a step toward building defence ties as they seek to counter the growing maritime assertiveness of China.
Recent years have seen China emerge as a major regional power.
In 2017, it opened its first overseas naval base in Djibouti and has strengthened ties with several regional countries including Pakistan, Sri Lanka and the Maldives.
And Beijing is pursuing its “Belt and Road” global infrastructure initiative that invests in Southeast Asian countries but which US critics say is based on “predatory” economics.
“The Indo-Pacific has many belts and many roads,” Mattis said.
The United States is also keen to tap into India’s large defence market. It has emerged as India’s No. 2 weapons supplier, closing US$15 billion worth of deals over the last decade.
Mattis has been pushing for a waiver for countries like India, after Trump signed a law last year which said that any country trading with Russia’s defence and intelligence sectors would face sanctions.
“I think India and the relationship with the United States is the potentially most historic opportunity we have in the 21st-century and I intend to pursue that quite rigorously,” Davidson, the incoming head of the command, said last month.
However, experts said the name change would mean little unless it was tied to a broader strategy.
“Renaming PACOM is ultimately a symbolic act … (it) will have a very limited impact unless the US follows through with a significant array of initiatives and investments that reflect a wider aperture,” said Abraham Denmark, a former deputy assistant secretary of defence for East Asia under President Barack Obama.
http://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-...india-us-military-renames-its-pacific-command
American Raj? Pentagon renames PACOM to ‘Indo-Pacific Command’
Say goodbye to the Pacific Command and hello to the US Indo-Pacific Command: the Pentagon has renamed the US military’s largest geographical component to reflect growing overtures from Washington to India.
“Relationships with our Pacific and Indian Ocean allies and partners have proven critical to maintaining regional stability,”US Defense Secretary James Mattis said on Wednesday. “In recognition of the increasing connectivity between the Indian and Pacific Oceans, today we rename the US Pacific Command to US Indo-Pacific Command.”
Mattis made the announcement at the change of command ceremony in Hawaii, where Admiral Philip Davidson took over the duties from Admiral Harry Harris, nominated to be the next US ambassador to South Korea.
The name change is regarded as largely symbolic. India is already considered part of PACOM’s area of responsibility, which also includes China, Mongolia, Southeast Asia, Australia, Antarctica and the entire Pacific Ocean.
The US has been pushing for stronger military relations with India since 2016, however, when the two countries signed an agreement governing the use of military bases for repair and resupply. The deal was part of the Obama administration’s “pivot to Asia” strategy aimed at countering China’s growing military strength. India regards China as a regional rival, and the two countries have clashed in the past over border disputes in the Himalayas.
Read more
US advises India to consider consequences of purchasing Russia’s S-400 systemsThe Trump administration has sought to replace Russia as India’s top supplier of military equipment. While Washington has sold $15 billion worth of weapons and equipment to India over the past decade, New Delhi has preferred to buy big-ticket items from Moscow, from jet fighters and submarines to the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya.
Washington has also tried to stop India from buying S-400 air defense systems from Russia. The purchase would “complicate interoperability” with US forces and “limit... the degree with which the United States will feel comfortable in bringing additional technology”into India, House Armed Services Committee chairman Mac Thornberry (R-Texas) told Indian media on Wednesday.
If India goes ahead with the purchase of the S-400, this could jeopardize the deal to acquire US-made Predator drones, Thornberry said. The US has banned sales of military equipment to countries that buy weapons from Russia, as part of a sanctions effort to “isolate” Moscow.
Meanwhile, New Delhi has also been negotiating with Tehran to bypass US-linked banks and not use dollars in oil transactions, thus avoiding the US sanctions imposed on Iran in the wake of the Trump administration’s decision to exit the 2015 JCPOA nuclear deal.
https://www.rt.com/usa/428295-indo-pacific-command-pentagon/
