Senior Indian military leaders join Admiral Samuel Paparo in New Delhi as both countries expand defence, maritime and strategic cooperation
New Delhi: U.S. Ambassador to India Sergio Gor hosted Admiral Samuel Paparo, Commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, during the admiral’s India visit. The gathering brought together senior Indian military leaders and underscored the growing importance of the India-US Major Defence Partnership.
Gor said he was honoured to host Paparo, calling him one of America’s most consequential military leaders. He noted that Paparo leads the U.S. combatant command responsible for the Indo-Pacific, with around 400,000 military and civilian personnel across a region spanning roughly half the globe.
Among those present were Chief of Defence Staff General N. S. Raja Subramani, Army Chief General Dhiraj Seth, Vice Chief of the Air Staff Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit, and Chief of Integrated Defence Staff Air Marshal Tejinder Singh, along with other senior defence officials.
Paparo’s visit focuses on military-to-military cooperation, maritime security and strategic coordination in the Indo-Pacific. He has also held talks with senior Indian officials on strengthening defence and strategic ties and discussed regional and global security issues.
A widening partnership
The India-US defence relationship has grown into a Major Defence Partnership built on cooperation in logistics, secure communications, geospatial data, military exercises and defence technology. Key agreements include LEMOA (2016), COMCASA (2018) and BECA (2020).
The two sides have also deepened work on maritime domain awareness, information sharing, interoperability and joint training, with their armed forces engaging across multiple services and domains.
Defence-industrial cooperation is now another major pillar. The partnership is moving beyond procurement toward co-development, co-production, technology collaboration and stronger supply chains, with growing attention to artificial intelligence, semiconductors and space technologies.
Focus on the Indo-Pacific
The engagement reflects a shared interest in a free, open, secure and stable Indo-Pacific. Maritime security is especially significant given India’s central position in the Indian Ocean and America’s broader regional responsibilities.
Paparo’s meetings with India’s top military leadership offer a platform to discuss regional security, maritime cooperation, operational coordination, emerging defence technologies and strategic resilience. The New Delhi visit highlights how broad the relationship has become, extending from exercises and equipment to technology, information sharing, maritime security and industrial collaboration.