NEW DELHI: Far away from the raging bilateral tariff tensions, India and US on Monday kicked off one of their largest-ever Army ‘Yudh Abhyas’ exercise in Alaska, even as planning is underway to conduct the top-notch Malabar naval exercise among ‘Quad’ countries off Guam in Western Pacific in Nov.India-US ties may have plummeted after President Donald Trump imposed 50% tariffs on New Delhi but defence officials say the bilateral strategic partnership built over last two decades, with defence cooperation being its cornerstone, is in no danger of unravelling as yet.”It’s early days yet… though mutual trust has taken a big hit, there is too much at stake,” an official said. Just in terms of defence acquisitions, the delivery of 99 GE-F404 turbofan engines by US firm General Electric, which HAL contracted for $716 million in Aug 2021 to power the all-important indigenous Tejas Mark-1A fighters, has just about begun after a two-year delay. India is also getting set to sign another deal with GE for 113 more such engines for $1 billion.Apart from other deals, India is also slated to receive 31-armed MQ-9B ‘Predator’ high-altitude, long-endurance drones, ordered from the US for $3.8 billion in Oct last year, in the 2029-30 timeframe.US has bagged lucrative Indian defence deals worth over $25 billion since 2007, though there might be a re-think on future arms deals if the downward trajectory in bilateral ties continues amid the ongoing geopolitical churn unleashed by Trump. India, in pursuit of its “strategic autonomy”, of course, has already accelerated its re-engagement with China despite the continuing trust deficit on the border, while steadfastly sticking to its long-standing strategic-defence ties with Russia.In ‘Yudh Abhyas’ exercise in the subarctic climate of Fort Wainwright in Alaska, over 450 Madras Regiment soldiers will undertake a spectrum of high-altitude tactical drills with troops from 5th Infantry Regiment “Bobcats” of Arctic Wolves Brigade Combat Team, 11th Airborne Division of the US, till Sept 14.Parallelly, India, US, Australia and Japan are finalising operational details for upcoming 29th edition of Malabar naval exercise off Guam. The Malabar began as a bilateral endeavour between India and the US in 1992 but includes all ‘Quad’ countries now.
