By Lalit K Jha Washington, Oct 27 (PTI) To strengthen maritime security,India and the United States have agreed to implement theprogramme for Helicopter Operations from Ships other ThanAircraft Carriers (HOSTAC), the Pentagon has said.
A decision in this regard was taken by Defense MinisterNirmala Sitharaman and her US Counterpart Jim Mattis duringtheir meeting in Philippines on Wednesday on the sidelines ofthe ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting-Plus.
"The two emphasized the importance of strengtheningmaritime security cooperation, and, in support of thisobjective, decided to implement the program for HelicopterOperations from Ships other Than Aircraft Carriers (HOSTAC),"the Pentagon Spokesperson Dana W White said.
Sitharaman and Mattis "agreed on the importance of arules-based international order" in which all nations are ableto prosper, and the "need to work together" against the commonthreat of terrorism, White said.
They discussed a range of initiatives to strengthen US-India defense cooperation and enhance India's leadership rolein the Indo-Pacific, White said.
This was their second meeting in less than a month.
Mattis had travelled to India late last month.
"This is a moment of strategic convergence for the US andIndia," White told reporters at a Pentagon news conference.
PTI LKJARK.
This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.