The Next Chapter in U.S.-India Defense Ties

Grand Tamasha

After a long summer break, we are excited to be back with the tenth season of Grand Tamasha. To kick off our brand-new season, this week Milan sits down with the U.S. government’s point person on the U.S.-India defense relationship to discuss the next chapter in U.S.-India defense ties.

Lindsey Ford is the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for South and Southeast Asia. In this capacity, she serves as the principal advisor to senior leadership at the Pentagon for all policy matters pertaining to this vast region. Chief among her responsibilities is managing the day-to-day defense relationship with India.

Lindsey is no stranger to the world of U.S.-India relations, having worked extensively on this relationship during previous roles at the Brookings Institution, the Asia Society Policy Institute, and an earlier stint at the Pentagon between 2009-2015.

Milan and Lindsey discuss the historic June 2023 summit between President Biden and Prime Minister Modi, breakthroughs in U.S.-India defense co-production and co-development, and the new ways in which the U.S. and Indian governments are collaborating with industry, think tanks, and academics on defense innovation. Plus, the two discuss the emerging security architecture in the Indo-Pacific and the Quad’s agenda for the future.

Episode Notes:

“Reexamining America’s Bet on India (with Ashley J. Tellis),” Grand Tamasha, June 21, 2023.

[VIDEO] Ely Ratner and Lindsey Ford, “Building a More Resilient Indo-Pacific Security Architecture, Hudson Institute,” March 2, 2023.

The White House, “Joint Statement from the United States and India,” June 22, 2023.

Rudra Chaudhuri, Konark Bhandari, and Ashima Singh, “The U.S.-India Initiative on Critical and Emerging Technology (iCET): The Way Forward,” Carnegie India, January 24, 2023.