The two-week Cope India-2023 joint air exercise, which ended on Monday, represented the intervention of US airpower in South Asia. It was the first time that US Air Force Rockwell B-1B Lancer strategic bombers participated in the exercises. This, together with the location of the maneuvers held close to the Tibetan border with China, attracted global attention.
The Indian Air Force used Su-30MKI, Rafale, Tejas and Jaguar fighters in the exercise, while the US dispatched F-15 warplanes from Kadena Air Base in Okinawa, Japan, which were supported by Indian aerial refueling planes and airborne warning and control system aircraft. The Japan Air Self-Defense Force also sent aircrew to observe the exercises. The unprecedented scale of the exercises and the Japanese connection gave the impression of an airpower alliance to defend against communist China.
Prior to this, large-scale joint exercises by the US and India only involved “combat readiness,” mainly involving mountain operations. The trend of development suggests that the US plans to expand the Cope India exercises by inviting India and Australia to integrate them with AUSINDEX bilateral naval exercises, which are held every two years, to strengthen regional security cooperation between the US, India and Australia.
All modern joint air defense systems have highly classified electronic intelligence-gathering functions that have a strong influence on long-term strategic deployment. Although India has no plans to purchase F-35 jets, it is concerned that the US might impose sanctions on New Delhi under the Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act, which empowers the White House to act to prevent interactions between Indian and Russian intelligence or defense agencies or individuals, or against organizations that have such business transactions, with the purpose of deterring India or countries that use US-made armaments from purchasing Russian-made military items.
However, India has never fully committed itself to a market monopolized by Russia or the US, but has remained flexible in its arms purchases, including using a lot of British and French weaponry. This has made it a competitive market for major arms-exporting nations. India has for a long time used its diverse arms procurement strategy to attract the attention of European countries and the US, as it seeks a greater role on the international political stage.
India has Russian Su-30MKIs, French Mirage 2000Hs and British Jaguar fighter jets, as well as its indigenous Tejas fighters. The Indian Navy uses US Boeing P-8I Poseidons as its mainstay fixed-wing patrol and reconnaissance aircraft. India will soon increase its purchases of the US-made planes, again boosting its profile in international politics.
The US’ allies in the Indo-Pacific region, especially Australia and India, are the cornerstones of its Indo-Pacific strategy, based upon which it has conducted a series of high-level political and military activities to demonstrate the breadth and depth of each bilateral relationship. Australia, at the behest of the US, wants to partner with India to establish a region of “peace and security” to uphold the rules-based international order, and restrain China’s expansion in the South China Sea and the Indian Ocean.
Canberra and New Delhi have not signed a defense cooperation agreement or arms procurement deals. Their cooperation has thus far been limited to a few joint military exercises. If the two nations were to form a clearer alliance, then Taiwan, under the US’ Indo-Pacific strategic layout, should expand its military diplomacy, and conduct military exchanges and interactions with more of its allies.
Chang Yan-ting is a retired air force lieutenant general.
Translated by Julian Clegg
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