India-US Strategic News and Discussion

[pankajs]

Here is the Indian story on the previous story

US submits list of 10 defence technologies for transfer to India

Informed Indian sources confirmed that the Pentagon has submitted a list of 10 sensitive technologies for transfer from US to India.

New Delhi is "reviewing" these offers and would get back to the United States soon, with its response, they said.

Meanwhile, the US has sought opinion from its strong defence industry to identify next set of technologies which could be shared and transferred to India.

According to US sources, the number of such defence technology transfers could cross 90.

[pankajs]

What did Manmohan Singh achieve from US trip?

Ronen Sen, former ambassador to the US, said, "The PM's meeting with Obama was better than most expectations." The India-US relationship has returned to its top billing, having suffered some neglect in the preceding months. Kanwal Sibal, former foreign secretary, agreed. "The meeting was productive in the sense that in the preceding months it was mired in doubts on US side in particular. Obama would have been influenced by these views of US corporates. It was good for the PM to convey his thinking."

A direct result of talks between US deputy secretary Ashton Carter and NSA, Shivshankar Menon, the defence cooperation agreement took care of a number of the procedural problems dogging the development of military ties. Ultimately, this could result in joint development of weapons systems between India and the US. But that is still a while away — the two sides have a year to work out licencing procedures.

Critical aspects of the relationship — like the liability issue, for instance — have been left for the future. Despite the preliminary contract signed with Westinghouse, the concerns on the nuclear liability law have not gone away. These will have to be addressed, but for the moment, there is an appearance of agreement between the two sides.

Sibal has concerns on the defense relationship. Wondering whether the defense ties is balancing out the problems on the economic arena, he said, "This agreement with have implications for our relations with Russia and China." Russia has occupied the top supplier position for decades, but this could erode that relationship further. France, Israel and the US have all grown to become huge defence suppliers in the past decade. A defence cooperation programme could, in future, unseat Russia from that billing.

Shedding its inhibitions about multilateral defence exercises that might spook China, India has agreed to join the Pacific Rim naval exercises next year. "The Chinese would be watching that closely," said Sibal.

The real issue with the US is the declining confidence in India's economic and trade practices. On the day the PM landed, while the US Senate passed a resolution welcoming him to the US, at the same time, a group of 14 governors sent a letter to Obama protesting against India. The PM attempted to bridge the gaps during a meeting with US CEOs, but it is clear that India needs to create a better climate for investment, better predictability and transparency. "The Congress and the corporate lobby were our strongest constituency," said Sen.

If George Bush was responsible for the "dehyphenation" of India and Pakistan, Obama and Manmohan Singh together put "hyphenation" back on the agenda. Obama put India-Pak ties on the table, so the PM had no option but to take a tough line on terrorism after meeting the US president.

Worse, he used the UN general assembly address not to talk about big global issues or a global vision, but a more hackneyed script of Kashmir and cross-border terrorism.

The meeting with Sharif was best avoided. Certainly, the PM himself worked hard to disabuse optimists that anything would come of it, asking everybody to "tone down expectations." Sharif, too, played a domestic game. As Sibal said, Sharif took a harder line on Kashmir than his predecessor Gilani and certainly Pervez Musharraf.

"After the Samba incident, it was clear the meeting could go nowhere," the former foreign secretary said. But others felt, having committed to the meeting, a cancellation might have looked worse. Both leaders said their piece and turned away, armed with some vague understanding about DGMOs' meeting. "This is nothing new," said Sibal. "DGMOs have met even after Kargil, but this is a flawed approach, unlikely to yield much," he added.

Pakistan has slowed down on granting MFN to India, Sharif called for UN intervention in Kashmir. Singh stressed on Pakistan as the epicentre of terrorism. Going back to a composite dialogue just got much harder.

[vishvak]

Purchase of javelin has been shelved.

There are no plans for joint development.

Well there it goes. It's like seeing a beautiful bird on a tree far away. Should we be not selective about our own requirements. Conditions of ToT should be strictly adhered to.

[Karan M]

Purchase of javelin has been shelved.

There are no plans for joint development.

Source?

[NRao]

pankajs,

Thanks for those two article.

Right now the critical item is "time". No longer technologies or regulations, etc. Although the ball is in the court of India, they will still have to tackle Babudom on BOTH sides. These articles tell me that the US has managed to somehow overcome a majority of resistance on their side. the "time" factor is to push India to do the same. The rest - on BOTH sides - is nearly in place. Nothing has been accepted nor rejected - YET.

Let us see what happens. The next year should be telling.

[Bade]

Considering US offers even in non-military areas, it does finally look like the US is opening up to India. I am quite surprised at all the negative feelings espoused here based on past events. If the offer is for areas where we lack there should be little doubt in accepting it. We still export our best human resources to the USA and no one seems to have any issues with it. It is time for the USA to payback to India. Well it is overdue in any case.

[Vayutuvan]

Bade, I also do not want to be negative but the cynicism from Indian side is not unfounded. The US reinforced it now by pressing on Kashmir. More later as I am on iPod.

[Sagar G]

Here is the Indian story on the previous story

US submits list of 10 defence technologies for transfer to India

What are these 10 "sensitive" technologies ??? Mr Mouth Platitudes also says

"We changed our mindset around technology transfer to India in the department of defence from a culture of presumptive no to one of presumptive yes," he said.

If that is the case then where is the confirmation that USA will transfer all the sensitive technologies of Javelin missile if we choose it ??? All we have instead is verbal volleys about a paper NG missile. Obama had said a long time back that our organizations will be taken off their technology restriction list but the previous DRDO chief had said that it was only on paper and nothing on ground has changed.

Interestingly all these hoo haa gaa gaa goo goo is happening from Mr. Mouth Platitude only and none of our scientists have said anything which would indicate a positive change in US's attitude towards India w.r.t. technology sharing.

[vishvak]

If you look at careful step by step reducing restrictions or ToT moves by USA for benefit of Indians, you notice how USA uses this as diplomatic tool only that positively shows relations in good light.

One can't be blamed if he forgets about outright raids and loot of military gears and offensive weapons by pakis who have targeted Indian troops and citizens from across the border.

[Philip]

Some truly sad news.

Tom Clancy has crossed the Styx.The man who gave us such great thrillers like "The hunt for Red October",etc. is now in the happy hunting ground of his ancestors.RIP Tom Clancy.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/book ... ed-66.html

Tom Clancy, thriller writer, dies aged 66
Bestselling American author Tom Clancy, known for his novels set during and after the Cold War, has died in hospital in Baltimore.

Tom Clancy in Oxford in 1997 Photo: Rob Judges

Alice Vincent and Philip Sherwell
02 Oct 2013

American thriller writer Tom Clancy died in hospital in Baltimore, Maryland, on Tuesday night. He was 66.

Clancy's death was announced by the New York Times, who reported that the author's publicist had broken the news. Clancy's UK publisher, Penguin, subsequently confirmed that he had died. His representatives did not initially provide a cause of death, leaving fans intrigued about the final twist in the life of a writer who delivered improbable plots with extremely intricate military and espionage detail.

Tom Weldon, Chief Executive of Penguin Random House UK, said: "Tom Clancy changed readers’ expectations of what a thriller could do. He was a master of his craft and it was our privilege to work with him. He will be greatly missed by millions of fans in the UK and around the world."

Head of Clancy's US publisher, Penguin Group's David Shanks, said he was "deeply saddened by Tom’s passing." "He was a consummate author, creating the modern-day thriller, and was one of the most visionary storytellers of our time", Shanks added, "I will miss him dearly and he will be missed by tens of millions of readers worldwide.”

Clancy was best known for his thriller novels about espionage and military science set during and after the Cold War. Dubbed the inventor of the tecno-thriller, his novels The Hunt for Red October, Patriot Games, Clear and Present Danger and The Sum of All Fears have been adapted into blockbuster films starring Alec Baldwin and Harrison Ford. Ben Affleck played his most famous fictional character, Jack Ryan, in 2002.

Clear and Present Danger was the bestselling novel of the 1980s, selling more than 1.6 million hardcover copies after its release in 1989. In later life, Clancy worked on a series of computer games, and continued to publish novels. His 17th and last novel, Command Authority, is set for publication in December.

Although he went on to sign multi-million dollar book deals by the late nineties, Clancy ran an insurance firm before his literary debut, The Hunt for Red October in 1984. His keen interest in naval history translated into detailed descriptions of military life in his books. The American military and intelligence circles welcomed Clancy and gave him essential information. He was famed for saying "I've made up stuff that's turned out to be real, that's the spooky part" in a New York Times interview.

In real life, he was a strong supporter of conservative causes. In the aftermath of the Sept 11, 2001, terror attacks on the US, he said that left-wing American politicians were partly responsible for “gutting” the Central Intelligence Agency.

Clancy, who is survived by his second wife and was a part-owner of the Baltimore Orioles baseball club, once offered this insight on his writing style: “I do not over-intellectualise the production process. I try to keep it simple: Tell the damned story.”

[kshirin]

Nanda raja bhavishaythe!!!

What the Indian side will learn is that the US procurement system is wholly focused on DOMESTIC procurement and DOMESTIC R & D, not on foreign buys

Well, glad to see someone bring up aspects other than JUST technologies (engines, planes, ships, tanks, radars, etc).

On procurement - no, the US is very, very widely distributed. They are very suspicious of the Chinese - for very good reasonS. But they have got around major issues and tightening around what is left.

On R&D, that is the nature of the beast - most companies are located in the US and teh funding is in the US. So one cannot expect major work share to be shipped outside. R&D is based purely on risks and the fact of the matter is that there is no nation outside the US that has a need or the funds to support that risk. The Soviets are the only others that come to mind - need + funds.

However, be patient and let us see what happens. A few more lego blocks need to fall - will not be easy, but there is bright day light at the end of that tunnel.

Pakalam.

I wish we could get into a relationship with the US through which we could "transfer" their systems- their university, research centres, DARPA, supportive business environment, instead of the top down TOT approach which simply hasn't worked in the past with other partners. And I wish our policy makers would pursue how to learn and adapt from the US system than facile hand me down solutions, which also will not work. We are NOT known for reverse engineering or copying which is perhaps why people feel safe offering us tehcnology, they know we will be too lazy to reproduce it.And BTW, the Chinese are learning and studying the US system in great detail, and they may succeed in replicating it...

[kish]

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/What-did-Manmohan-Singh-achieve-from-US-trip/articleshow/23318875.cmsIf George Bush was responsible for the "dehyphenation" of India and Pakistan, Obama and Manmohan Singh together put "hyphenation" back on the agenda. Obama put India-Pak ties on the table, so the PM had no option but to take a tough line on terrorism after meeting the US president.
[/b]

"hyphenation" is firmly back in place. Reports from U.S think-tanks clearly indicate this.

India’s alleged involvement in illicit nuclear trade networks came under fire in a detailed report issued by a major security-focused think tank here, the Institute for Science and International Security.

In its 114-page report on “Future World of Illicit Nuclear Trade,” authors David Albright, Andrea Stricker, and Houston Wood argued that India despite being a non-Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT) signatory, was “expected to maintain or improve nuclear arsenals via illicit trade, in violation of originating state laws and international law.”

According to ISIS India was in fact among a group of “illicit nuclear trade suppliers of concern,” including China, Pakistan, Brazil, Turkey, Russia and a host of “rogue states” such as Iran, North Korea, Syria “and possibly a Khan-type network.”

Outlining numerous specific concerns about India’s involvement in illicit procurement the July report unveiled on October 1 said that New Delhi “On one hand, seeks parts, equipment, and technology for its civilian nuclear power program, an effort facilitated by the 2008 U.S.-India agreement on civilian nuclear trade, while at the same time engaging in illicit activities to obtain key items for its unsafeguarded nuclear facilities and nuclear weapons programme.”

It also pulled no punches in emphasising that India benefitted from the Abdul Qadeer Khan nuclear smuggling network which was “exposed and rolled up in 2003 and 2004,” also noting that nuclear smugglers allegedly supplying Iran with components, “placed orders from Germany and Turkey to an Indian valve company.” In this specific case four shipments of 856 valves went from India to Turkey and then on to Iran, the report said.

The ISIS study however exonerated some aspects of India’s nuclear development, pointing out that India used commercial, electricity production reactors to make plutonium for its nuclear weapons, including heavy water reactors.

This method, used by India “as a way to surge plutonium production following its 1999 nuclear tests and the formal launch of its nuclear arms race with Pakistan, did not however entail the use of reactors under International Atomic Energy Agency safeguards, “so their use did not involve a violation of any international agreements.”

However ISIS underscored India’s dependence on foreign procurement to acquire major components, such as the fact that it was “known to have procured on several occasions at least one of the required chemicals, tributyl phosphate (TBP), for its own programme abroad rather than making the TBP itself.”

A long list of components were said to have been illicitly procured by India and other nations such as Iran, North Korea, Pakistan, including vacuum measuring equipment, vacuum pumps, fast-acting valves, ring magnets, specialized oils, specialized epoxy resins, computerized control equipment, high-grade maraging steel, high-strength aluminum, high-strength carbon fibre, CNC machine tools.

In terms of policy recommendations to stem the rise of illicit nuclear trade in the future the ISIS report said that “proliferant states, such as India and Pakistan, which have depended or did depend on overseas, illegal procurements for their nuclear programmes, may resist reforms in trade control systems and rigorous enforcement of trade control laws.”

India was also considered to feature in the list of “future possible turntable countries or countries of diversion concern” and one policy response would be to initiate an international effort to improve and standardise security and classification rules among responsible nations.

Additionally domestic intelligence agencies involved in investigating and analyzing illicit trade had to be developed in India, “but as these countries implement their controls more effectively, they can also strengthen government/industry cooperation,” the report said.

Ultimately it would be necessary to “pressure partners such as India and Pakistan to stop breaking U.S. and other nations’ laws to equip their nuclear weapons or unsafeguarded nuclear programmes, ISIS noted, adding that negotiations toward tension reduction and caps on fissile material and nuclear weapons production between India and Pakistan would also help.

U.S. think-tank slams India’s alleged covert nuke trade

[Philip]

The attack against India for N-proliferation by a US think tank is a deliberate ploy to put continued pressure upon us regarding India buying "turd class" US N-reactors ,which aren't being built anywhere and get no guarantees for its performance and safety in the bargain.It also reveals why I maintain that the US is a "Nuclear Hypocrisy" and not a true democracy.One has to only look at how the US winked for decades at Pak's nuclear proliferation,the AQ Khan nuclear MNC,the Sino-NoKo-Pak axis of nuclear and ballistic missile proliferation and compare it with India's principled stand on the issue.

Right from Clinton's presidency right down to that of O'bomber's ,there is a massive blind spot to Pak's N-proliferation and terrorism.In fact by continuing this lascivious and promiscuous relationship with Pak and its military and intel outfit,the US is actually complicit in helping nurture and promote terrorism against India.The insidious attempts to force India to compromise with Pak over J&K is a clear indication of its duplicity.In selling arms to India,it wants to profit and control our military machines beggaring us ,wanting to make money out of our misery. A few decades ago,the US did the very same getting Iran and Iraq to engage in war that beggared both sides .Saddam was the West's blue eyed boy,whom they supplied the tech for his WMDs especially his gas /chem warfare capabilities.It is so ironic when talking about the use of chem weapons to find in the media today that none other than Winston Churchill wanted to gas our troublesome tribals in the N-East ! So much for all the hoo-haa about Assad and Syria's chem attacks which are now generally acknowledged to have been a false flag gambit by the West to be used as the fig leaf excuse to invade Syria and indulge in yet another game of regime change.

[Rony]

One of the few things which were exempted are the propaganda news channels

In Shutdown, Government-Funded News Declared 'Essential to National Security'

On Tuesday, the Broadcasting Board of Governors, the overseer of U.S.-funded news in 61 languages in more than 100 countries, announced that its vast range of TV, radio and Internet programming will remain operational "while the numbers of support personnel are reduced."

The Obama administration has determined that BBG's main services are "foreign relations essential to national security," which will preserve a range of government broadcasters including Voice of America, Radio Free Asia, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, the Middle East Broadcasting Networks and the Office of Cuba Broadcasting (Radio and TV Martí).

[Rony]

Pentagon Spent $5 Billion on Weapons on the Eve of the Shutdown

The Pentagon pumped billions of dollars into contractors' bank accounts on the eve of the U.S. government's shutdown that saw 400,000 Defense Department employees furloughed.

All told, the Pentagon awarded 94 contracts yesterday evening on its annual end-of-the-fiscal-year spending spree, spending more than five billion dollars on everything from robot submarines to Finnish hand grenades and a radar base mounted on an offshore oil platform. To put things in perspective, the Pentagon gave out only 14 contracts on September 3, the first workday of the month.

Here are some of the more interesting purchases from Monday's dollar-dump.

First up: the Defense Logistics Agency, the Pentagon branch that provides the armed services with things like fuel and spare parts. DLA has the honor of dropping the most cash in one contract last night with the $2.5 billion award it gave to aircraft engine-maker Pratt & Whitney for "various weapons system spare parts" used by the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marines. Other highlights of DLA's last-minute spree included: $65 million for military helmets from BAE Systems, $24 million for "traveling wave tubes" to amplify radio signals from Thales, $17 million for liquid nitrogen, $15 million for helium and $19 million on cots. Yes, cots.

Then came the Navy. The sea service spent hundreds of millions of dollars on 31 contracts buying everything from high-tech Finnish hand grenades to janitorial services.

The service's biggest contracts were aimed at protecting ships from underwater attack. It gave Lockheed Martin a total of $139 million for sonar that allows Arleigh Burke-class destroyers to detect submarines and underwater mines. The Navy is also buying $40 million worth of hand grenades made in Vihtavuori, Finland, that allow "users to choose the level of blast needed for the situation." Another $18 million is going to Phoenix International Holdings to operate a robot submarine called the Submarine Rescue Diving and Recompression System that can save people from disabled subs sitting up to 2,000 feet underwater.

Not everything the Navy spent its end of year cash on was high tech, however. The service also gave $64 million contract to build a new fuel pier in Point Loma, Calif. It also added $9 million onto an existing $138 million contract for janitors at Navy medical centers in San Diego.

The Air Force, traditionally DOD's biggest spender, was relatively restrained; it dished out only 17 contracts. One of the big themes of the Air Force's spend was spying. The service spent cash on everything from spy satellites to drones to planes that can be used to hunt drug dealers.

The air service gave General Atomics $49 million to help France buy 16 MQ-9 Reaper drones. It also dished out $64 million to Lockheed for help operating spy satellites that are equipped with infrared cameras. Another $9 million went to URS Corp. for maintenance work on the Air National Guard's fleet of RC-26B spy planes that help domestic law enforcement agencies catch drug dealers. Johns Hopkins University got $7 million from the Air Force Research Lab to develop software that can monitor raw communications signals and images collected around the world to detect significant "events" in real time. $8 million is going to a company called McCrone Associates to analyze particles in order to ensure someone is complying international ban on nuclear weapons tests. It doesn't say who that someone is or what type of particles are being analyzed.

The service also spent $9 million on a new gym at the Air Force Academy that includes areas for CrossFit training, space for the academy's Triathlon Club and a "television studio."

The Army only had a couple of relatively large contracts last night. The first was a $600 million award spread out between nine companies to develop alternative energy projects for the Army Corps of Engineers. The ground service also spent $200 million on for Interceptor-brand body armor made by Federal Prisons Industries for sales to other countries. In addition to these deals, the service gave out plenty of relatively small contracts -- and relatively is an important word here -- for everything from renovations on a reserve center in New Jersey to the purchase of 60 Mercedes Benz trucks for African countries.

The Missile Defense Agency (MDA) gave Raytheon $230 million to support operation of the massive, sea-going X-band radar station that MDA uses to detect ballistic missile launches in Asia. MDA also gave Trex Enterprises $6 million for telescope mirrors that are impervious to changes in temperature.

The Defense Threat Reduction Agency, the Pentagon's arm responsible for defeating threats posed by weapons of mass destruction, gave Johns Hopkins University $9 million for research into detecting "chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear and high-yield explosive material."

Finally, U.S. Special Operations Command got in on the spending last night, giving out one $49 million contract to Boeing for development work on an upgraded version of the Army's MH-6 Little Bird chopper.

This goes to show that even when the federal government is shutdown and the military has temporarily lost half its civilian workforce, the Pentagon can spend money like almost no one else

[NRao]

Pentagon Spent $5 Billion on Weapons on the Eve of the Shutdown

This goes to show that even when the federal government is shutdown and the military has temporarily lost half its civilian workforce, the Pentagon can spend money like almost no one else

I have not read the entire article (running late), but that is a punch below the belt. IF they had not "spent" that amount, they would have lost it too. Granted in the bargain they would have spent some of it on items they really did not need. But, that is the way this system works.

[NRao]

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/What-did-Manmohan-Singh-achieve-from-US-trip/articleshow/23318875.cmsIf George Bush was responsible for the "dehyphenation" of India and Pakistan, Obama and Manmohan Singh together put "hyphenation" back on the agenda. Obama put India-Pak ties on the table, so the PM had no option but to take a tough line on terrorism after meeting the US president.
[/b]

"hyphenation" is firmly back in place. Reports from U.S think-tanks clearly indicate this.

U.S. think-tank slams India’s alleged covert nuke trade

The hyphenation is based on the policy set by a US president (and may be a few others), it is also a binary system. That it comes and goes is like the sun rising and setting - it is bound to happen - either this way or that way.

On that article ................. yawn ................... just look at the authors of it. What do we expect from them? That set is hardly considered worth even mentioning kish.

[panduranghari]

One of the few things which were exempted are the propaganda news channels

In Shutdown, Government-Funded News Declared 'Essential to National Security'

On Tuesday, the Broadcasting Board of Governors, the overseer of U.S.-funded news in 61 languages in more than 100 countries, announced that its vast range of TV, radio and Internet programming will remain operational "while the numbers of support personnel are reduced."

The Obama administration has determined that BBG's main services are "foreign relations essential to national security," which will preserve a range of government broadcasters including Voice of America, Radio Free Asia, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, the Middle East Broadcasting Networks and the Office of Cuba Broadcasting (Radio and TV Martí).

Slightly old news but

link

excerpt-

PART III - EXPANSION OF PRODUCTIVE CAPACITY AND SUPPLY

Sec. 301. Loan Guarantees. (a) To reduce current or projected shortfalls of resources, critical technology items, or materials essential for the national defense, the head of each agency engaged in procurement for the national defense, as defined in section 801(h) of this order, is authorized pursuant to section 301 of the Act, 50 U.S.C. App. 2091, to guarantee loans by private institutions.

(b) Each guaranteeing agency is designated and authorized to: (1) act as fiscal agent in the making of its own guarantee contracts and in otherwise carrying out the purposes of section 301 of the Act; and (2) contract with any Federal Reserve Bank to assist the agency in serving as fiscal agent.

[vishvak]

About hyphenation isn't it relevant to cancel VISA of US consulate individuals indulging in muddling over Kashmir? We are looking at it only but not executing diplomatic options.

It is likely a result of ignorance policy from US to overlook terrorism selectively by Prez of USA even when government of USA considers government funded news as essential and not to be ignored.

[Lilo]

If the congi establishment has any measure of patriotism left , they may want to do a Pokhran 3 by the time they demit the office in 2014 - when one may expect Afghan draw down fuelled jihad to be in full flow from Paki side. That way lot of birds will be killed with a single stone and next govt will be negotiating with the rest of the world(especially massa and china) with a greater strategic heft.

[pankajs]

Pokhran 3 will happen only when A6 is near deployment or deployed .. 10-15 years from now .. my personal views wonlee .. other disclaimers apply (No one tests in the interim, we do not face a major threat, ityadi ityadi )

[Sagar G]

Not a right time for Pokhran three and what blasphemy is this congi and patriotism in a single line tauba tauba onlee !!!!

[saip]

Shots fired in Capitol. Probably by a govt guy who got furloughed by the Congress!

[Garooda]

Supposedly it was a female who was shot down as per many outlets.

[Garooda]

Beech_Wali_Ungli

Sometimes, you just have to laugh. Yesterday, HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius made the MSM blitz by announcing the website, glitches and all, and the national call-in center, which is 1-800-318-2596. Now to make this work, you have to skip the 1, because on a phone keypad, no letters are assigned to the number 1. But spell out the rest, and this is what you get.

1-800-3(F) 8(U) 2(C) 5(K) 9(Y) 6(O).

Tragically, the federal government, with all their power, couldn’t trade the 1 out for another 8 at the end. Then, the President’s true sentiment towards all of you would be much plainer.

Then again, they’ve really never been that subtle, have they?

[saip]

The driver must have had a death wish. She was surrounded by SIX policemen with guns drawn and she takes off and the police then open fire. She keeps driving with police cars in pursuit and ultimately she stops. She was hit but her condition is unknown at this point.

[NRao]

X-Posting:

India Pursues Indigenous ATGM Amid Javelin Talks

NEW DELHI — India has begun working on a homemade, man-portable anti-tank guided missile (ATGM), despite a US proposal to co-produce the Javelin ATGM.

Defence Ministry sources said the homemade project — a third generation Nag missile — is unlikely to derail the proposed Javelin deal, which is in only the preliminary stages of negotiation with the US. A scientist with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) claimed the Nag is lighter than the Javelin.

In what one US Embassy diplomat in India described as a groundbreaking initiative in India’s ties with Washington, US Deputy Defense Secretary Ashton Carter has proposed that India co-develop — rather than merely buy — the Javelin missile.

The Indian Army has a pressing demand for more than 20,000 third generation man-portable ATGMs, and all attempts to procure them from overseas over the past eight years has yielded no results.

Israel’s offer of its Spike ATGM was rejected in 2007 because it was the only vendor to respond to the tender. The US, meanwhile, refused to transfer technology after a proposal to buy the Javelin on a government-to-government basis. Indian MoD sources said that last year, the US refused to sell Javelin in adequate numbers to India due to “ international strategic and geopolitical considerations.”

The full details of Washington’s latest Javelin proposal have not been released, but MoD sources said the US wants to sell around 6,000 units within one year of the signing of the contract. In the future, the US would explore co-production of the Javelin and, at a later stage, work on the co-development of an ATGM tailor-made for India.{Perhaps the new willingness may be to offset the huge impending weapons transfer to Pakis and its optics in India}

The US would also transfer Javelin technology, including the manufacture of the warhead, rocket motor, propellant, guidance and seeker, but no algorithms for guidance, which an Indian Army official said is the core to any guidance system.{Desi guidance algo is top class if we go by DRDO folks. Perhaps we can replace the whole guidance algo with our own}

A team from Raytheon and Lockheed Martin has briefed the Indian MoD on the possibilities to be explored in the Javelin project, Indian MoD sources said.

A Lockheed Martin executive said Javelin is better than any other man-portable ATGM because it is ejected non-explosively, which is useful to the Indian Army in higher terrain. The executive, however, declined to discuss details of Carter’s proposal.

DRDO, meanwhile, has begun work on the homemade Nag missile, which would weigh only 16 kilograms compared to Javelin’s 26 kilograms, the DRDO scientist claimed.

The man-portable version of the Nag missile is simpler than the vehicle-mounted version and, as such, could be developed in the next three years, the scientist said.{Prototype to production is where most project schedules derail and most projects fail}

An Indian Army official said everyone, including DRDO, would be happy to get Javelin as nearly 25 years of work on the Nag ATGM has yet to result in a mature, third generation ATGM.

The Indian Army uses second generation, French-made Milan and Russian-made Konkurs ATGMs, which have a range of less than 2,000 meters.

So the proposal is import 6K outright .. followed by tot .. followed by local buy .. followed by co-development. I can live with that provided 6K does not include tot cost.

Tot cost can be bundled with local production provided tot is full and without any string attached .. except perhaps export of the product or of any subsystems .. however we should be free to do whatever we like with its derivatives.

[vishvak]

From a Nobel awardee in field of economics link

“But after the post-census redistricting and the 2012 elections, the non-Hispanic white share of the average Republican House district jumped from 73 percent to 75 percent, and the average Democratic House district declined from 52 percent white to 51 percent white. In other words, while the country continues to grow more racially diverse, the average Republican district continues to get even whiter.”
..
the number of strongly Democratic districts decreased from 144 before redistricting to 136 afterward. The number of strongly Republican districts increased from 175 to 183. “When one party starts out with 47 more very strong districts than the other,” said Cook, “the numbers suggest that the fix is in for any election featuring a fairly neutral environment. Republicans would need to mess up pretty badly to lose their House majority in the near future.” In other words, there is little risk of political punishment for the Tea Party members now holding the country hostage.
..
the Supreme Court’s inane Citizens United decision allowed a single donor, Sheldon Adelson, to create his own alternative universe. He was able to contribute so much money to support Newt Gingrich’s candidacy that Gingrich was able to stay in the Republican presidential primary race longer than he would have under sane campaign finance rules.
..
Last month, for the first time ever in Colorado, two state senators who voted for universal background checks on gun purchases lost their seats in a recall election engineered by gun extremists and reportedly financed with some $400,000 from the National Rifle Association. You’re elected, you vote your conscience on a narrow issue, but now determined opponents don’t have to wait for the next election. With enough money, they can get rid of you in weeks.
..
Finally, the rise of a separate G.O.P. (and a liberal) media universe — from talk-radio hosts, to Web sites to Fox News — has created another gravity-free zone, where there is no punishment for extreme behavior, but there’s 1,000 lashes on Twitter if you deviate from the hard-line and great coverage to those who are most extreme. When politicians only operate inside these bubbles, they lose the habit of persuasion and opt only for coercion.
..
These “legal” structural changes in money, media and redistricting are not going away. They are superempowering small political movements to act in extreme ways without consequences and thereby stymie majority rule. If democracy means anything, it means that, if you are outvoted, you accept the results and prepare for the next election. Republicans are refusing to do that. It shows contempt for the democratic process.
..

So what happened to moral keepers in USA?

What happened to secularism in USA?

The fact is that in USA Republicans are acting by coercion outright while secularists and moral keepers are maintaining radio silence- unlike on Syria issue-in USA on topics of democracy.

Isn't right wing extremism more dangerous than left wing extremism or jihardi extremism? Don't USA got educated shehzada to discuss this important topic of which extremism is more dangerous in other countries' embassies?

[Amber G.]

Considering US offers even in non-military areas, it does finally look like the US is opening up to India. I am quite surprised at all the negative feelings espoused here based on past events. If the offer is for areas where we lack there should be little doubt in accepting it. We still export our best human resources to the USA and no one seems to have any issues with it. It is time for the USA to payback to India. Well it is overdue in any case.

Of course, one can look at the glass as half empty vs half full -- or 1% empty or 99% full for that matter...IMO ...Much has changed from the past. Unlike old days, just to give one example, compared to US cooperation in 90's Mumbai blasts, 26/11 (typo corrected) there was unprecedented cooperation between India and US - from analyzing GPS to unprecedented people to people (including military personal, scientists etc) contact..I met a Indian Navy/coast guard commander unit intercepted Kuber (and who personally interrogated Kasab) at a social gathering at an event hosted in US -- Even now there are a few naval officers who are taking courses in US's naval war college (and despite US govt shutdown this courses are continuing) ...Ask any of these guys, or Indian/US scientists who have seen the past, and they will all say that there is a sea change between the relationship now and what it was in the past.

Of course, as was said before - one can look at the empty part or the full part of the glass..!

[Cosmo_R]

Considering US offers even in non-military areas, it does finally look like the US is opening up to India. I am quite surprised at all the negative feelings espoused here based on past events. If the offer is for areas where we lack there should be little doubt in accepting it. We still export our best human resources to the USA and no one seems to have any issues with it. It is time for the USA to payback to India. Well it is overdue in any case.

Of course, one can look at the glass as half empty vs half full -- or 1% empty or 99% full for that matter...IMO ...Much has changed from the past. Unlike old days, just to give one example, compared to US cooperation in 90's Mumbai blasts, 7/11 there was unprecedented cooperation between India and US - from analyzing GPS to unprecedented people to people (including military personal, scientists etc) contact..I met a Indian Navy/coast guard commander unit intercepted Kuber (and who personally interrogated Kasab) at a social gathering at an event hosted in US -- Even now there are a few naval officers who are taking courses in US's naval war college (and despite US govt shutdown this courses are continuing) ...Ask any of these guys, or Indian/US scientists who have seen the past, and they will all say that there is a sea change between the relationship now and what it was in the past.

Of course, as was said before - one can look at the empty part or the full part of the glass..!

+1

On Bade's point about exporting Indian HR. Let me just observe that nobody held a gun to their heads to come to the US. In fact, before the mid-1990s, there were no jobs for them in India. Plus, they remit a tremendous amount of money homewards—something that is overlooked.

[V_Raman]

As always, our problem is one of internal governance. Fix the rot within and the world is at our doorstep.

[kshirin]

I am always suspicious of these TOT deals. With TOT, India will never develop its own R & D.

[Vayutuvan]

+1

On Bade's point about exporting Indian HR.

Cosmo_R (and Bade), do you really think that the US would care and why should it care? They are first and foremost business people. Like it or not the options are - if you like their tech pay their price, buy from somewhere else which is competitive or make yourself.

US thinking - overly simplifying for illustration purposes - would be

What is past is past. Yeah, India exported lots of HR, so what? Get them back or ST6U.

[ramana]

AmberG, 7/11 was in UK. 11/26 was in India.

[Bade]

matrimc, my point is if there is little concern in letting intellectual wealth walk out of the country, there should be even less concern if some comes back as material goods even if not entirely free. Getting ToT does not imply you do nothing yourself and wait for the next gift. It is upto to India to decide what it wants to do with the new technology in both civilian and military spheres.

US also views it as both business and buying future goodwill.

[Vayutuvan]

Bade, I do have things on my mind but will keep it to myself for the time being.

[Amber G.]

AmberG, 7/11 was in UK. 11/26 was in India.

I have corrected it. But my point was, even for 7/11 there was very good cooperation (MUCH different than what it was in the past) between Indians and US, UK etc... Victims may be in different countries, but the villains are the same...

It is in the interest of both US and India to do whatever it takes and prevent such attacks whether they take place in Boston or Mumbai...

[Cosmo_R]

+1

On Bade's point about exporting Indian HR.

Cosmo_R (and Bade), do you really think that the US would care and why should it care? They are first and foremost business people. Like it or not the options are - if you like their tech pay their price, buy from somewhere else which is competitive or make yourself.

US thinking - overly simplifying for illustration purposes - would be

What is past is past. Yeah, India exported lots of HR, so what? Get them back or ST6U.

I don't disagree with anything you've said. Both sides need to be selfish and self interested else it really complicates the picture. Oversimplifying as well, you can't drive forward while looking in the rear view mirror.

The only thing I get upset about is when people think that states should behave with each other the same way individuals do. At the state level, emotion has no place. It has to be forward calculations.

[ramana]

Bade, The real prize is Japan's collaboration in high technology.

[Lilo]

7/11 is 2006 Mumbai train bombings.
7/7 is UK tube.

I guess so called CTs are unwelcome in the current discussion ... As I may now feel repetitive - but hey ...
people should remember bRAWman's anecdote about how detonators and timers of massa make were used in 1993 Mumbai and the ultimate fate of that evidence.