NATO’s India Offer

The Diplomat ^

[MBT ARJUN]

In a surprise move, NATO has reportedly offered to share its ballistic missile defence (BMD) technology with India. The tentative proposal, premised on the acknowledgement of the ‘commonality of threats’ faced by NATO and India, includes the sharing of BMD technology as well as the possibility of ‘training together.’ There has yet to be any official response to this offer, but its acceptance would make India the only non-NATO ally, apart from Russia, in the alliance.

Russia’s reservations on this issue are well known, and it’s most likely that India, too, won’t be jumping at the bit. This could be attributed to at least three factors.

One, as a non-aligned country during the Cold War years, India maintained its distance from bloc politics. Though the international landscape has changed drastically since then, India has retained its policy of not entering into an alliance with any country, though New Delhi does have strategic partnerships with a record number of nations today. While warming to the United States considerably in the last half decade, India is still unlikely to enter into any arrangement that might be perceived as compromising its sovereign autonomy. It may be recalled, after all, that India hasn’t formally accepted the Proliferation Security Initiative because it’s a US-led initiative. A US-led BMD architecture, then, would also be viewed from the same perspective.

Second, while it’s true that India has been working on the indigenous development of BMD technology, and has conducted four successful interceptions since 2006, there has been no shared commonality of threats with NATO. As premised on the US missile threat assessment, threats to NATO are believed to arise from missile proliferation by problem states. BMD is seen as necessary to defend against limited ballistic missile attacks involving ‘up to a few tens of ballistic missiles.

[Cronos]

There was one or two in 2006-2007 about the Opium Wars. It was a GGG post, so very calm and insightful. Perhaps Sunkenciv or blam may have links to these articles.

[bcsco]

Wanna shill for the Chinese Government? Doesn't go too well around here, Bucko. But I guess you found that out. Oops...

[TheOldLady]

Nice ZOT graphic. Sorry I missed this one. Sigh...

[bcsco]

Thanks. Got it from that site you linked me to awhile back. I have another just like it for IBTZ.

[TheOldLady]

Slick!

[SunkenCiv]

NATO has reportedly offered to share its ballistic missile defence (BMD) technology with India.

Thanks Cronos.

• India remains Russia's client No.1 in arms export

[SunkenCiv]

There was something a little odd about that, almost as if someone took over an old account of someone else's.

• EdisonOne

[SunkenCiv]

Oh, now I read your whole message, sorry, I don't know, but I'm sure you're right, it must be around here somewhere.

opium wars site:freerepublic.com

Google

[odds]

Thanks.

[SunkenCiv]

My pleasure.