Article Posted on : - Mar 27, 2015

WASHINGTON (PTI): India and the US will jointly work on several defence technology projects to develop a "vibrant science and technology cooperation" for bolstering national, regional and global security, a senior White House official has told American lawmakers.

"Developing vibrant defence science and technology cooperation is one of the key steps in building enduring partnership between India and the United States.

"In support of these efforts, researchers from the Department of Defence and the Indian Ministry of Defence are discussing potential research collaborations in developing models of cognitive fatigue, artificial cognition and traumatic brain injury," Jo Handelsman, associate director for science at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy told lawmakers during a Congressional hearing.

He said that last year US President Barack Obama and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi had expressed their "intention to expand defence cooperation to bolster national, regional, and global security."

They had said India and the US would build an enduring partnership in which both sides could treat each other at the same level as their closest partners in the sectors of defence technology transfers, trade, research, co-production and co-development, he said.

The two countries had renewed their 10-year Defence Framework Agreement during Obama's Republic Day visit to India in January.