US, India discuss military cooperation, defense partnership

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth met Tuesday with Indian External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar in Washington, DC to discuss military cooperation and the defense partnership between their two countries.

"Almost right at the beginning of the administration, President (Donald) Trump and Prime Minister Shri (Narendra) Modi set a strong foundation for our relationship, which we're building on here today: productive, pragmatic and realistic," Hegseth said.

"And our nations boast a rich and growing history of cooperation driven by a shared commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific," he added.

Jaishankar said India's relationship with the US is already "strong," but more can be done.

"We believe that our defense partnership is today truly one of the most consequential pillars of the relationship. It's not built merely on shared interests, but we believe really deepening convergence and of capabilities, of responsibilities," he said.

Separately, Hegseth held a phone call with his Indian counterpart Rajnath Singh on Tuesday.

Singh said on X that they had an "excellent discussion" to review ongoing and new initiatives to further deepen the India-US defense partnership and strengthen cooperation in capacity building.

"Conveyed my deep appreciation for the unwavering support extended by the US to India in its fight against terrorism. Looking forward to meet him at an early date," he added.