COMCASA to help keep a watch over Indian Ocean

COMCASA to help keep a watch over Indian Ocean

News:

1. India has concluded the Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement (COMCASA) with the U.S. at the 2+2 dialogue.

Important Facts:

2. COMCASA is an India-specific version of CISMOA.

3. Benefits of COMCASA for India:

• Indian forces will get the U.S. military platforms like US satellites as well as heavy transporters and special operations platforms like C-17,C-130 J aircraft respectively and the US made long range maritime surveillance -P8I.
• Indian military will get a better picture of the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) which is seeing increasing Chinese movements.
• It will help India to get in the top tier of countries entitled to U.S.’s Strategic Trade Authorisation (STA-1).
• India will get access to Combined Enterprise Regional Information Exchange System (CENTRIXS).
• India and US has decided to exchange personnel for coordination and understanding, under which, India will get to post its representative at Bahrain where the U.S. Naval Forces Central Command (NAVCENT) is located to coordinate with US.

4. What is CENTRIXS:

• It is a secure communication system network of the US, consists of a collection of coalition wide area networks (WAN) known as enclaves.
• It will help Indian Navy to communicate securely with the U.S. Navy when needed.
• It will help India to have the wider situational picture of the region as U.S. has the large number ships and aircraft deployed in the IOR.
• It will allow India to reduce the stress on its assets and prioritise its deployments more efficiently.
• It will allow ship-to-ship operational dialogue between the two nations in text and web-based formats.
• So far in joint exercises, Indian Navy used to temporarily plug in portable CENTRIXS systems to communicate with U.S. assets.

Concerns regarding CENTRIXS:

• CENTRIXS would allow U.S. Navy to access India’s own secure communication network.
• The information shared with the U.S. will be accessible by Pakistan.
• However, explaining the regarding concerns, U.S. explained that,
• India will have a full access to the relevant equipment and there will be no disruptions.
• Data acquired through such systems will not be disclosed or transferred to any person or entity without India’s consent.
• This is an enabling instrument and does not commit India to acquire U.S. platforms.

5. Other key components covered under the 2+2 Dialogue apart from defence agreements are:

trade issues,

• cooperation on fighting terrorism,
• advancing “a free, open, and inclusive Indo-Pacific region” and
• promoting sustainable “debt-financing” in the region
• Joint efforts to combat terror groups such as Lashkar-e-Taiba and its networks.

6. Efforts put in 2+2 Dialogue in combating terror groups like Lashkar-e-Taiba and its networks are:

• India will share critical inputs to the US, enabling it to act against Lashkar operatives who are active on the Afghan soil with encouragement from Pakistan’s ISI.
• Ahead of the 2+2 dialogue, the US froze assets of three Pakistanis linked with the LeT, indicating its willingness to act against the group.
• Both the countries will aim to expose and shut down Lashkar-e ‘Tayyiba’s’ financial network and curtail its ability to raise funds to carry out violent terrorist attacks.
• S. state department has designated included Abdul Rehman al-Dakhil to its list of‘specially designated global terrorists’ which means all properties belonging to the person or organisation subject to US jurisdiction are blocked and Americans are prohibited from engaging in transactions with them.
• Grey listing of Pakistan by the Financial Action Task Force or FATF with strong support from the US and supported by all other P-5 members is expected to further squeeze space for the LeT in the Af-Pak region.

7. With two previous cancellations and months of drift and occasional discord, major issues raised after the 2+2 Dialogue are:

• India did not receive a clear-cut assurance of its GSP (Generalised System of Preferences) status being restored, or of waivers on steel and aluminium tariffs imposed by U.S..
• India is asked to increase imports of American oil and gas as well as aircraft in order to wipe out the trade surplus India enjoys.
• The U.S.’s demand, to “zero out” oil imports from Iran by November, is simply unreasonable. It would hurt India on an account of:
  • Strengthening costs of the dollar.
  • Rising fuel prices.
  • Substantial relations and engagement with Iran.
• No public statement was made by the U.S. on India’s investment in the Chabahar port, as Iran is ready to hand over the operational responsibility of a part of the port to an Indian entity as per the agreed timeframe.
• S. also did not clear any waiver to India purchasing Russian hardware, beginning with the S-400 missile system.

8. U.S. recently has enacted a law to counter Russia and its allies, Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA), for sanctions on countries that deal with Russia, in the backdrop of allegations on it for interfering with US elections and covert executive action in Europe to eliminate detractors of Russia.

9. U.S. however, have promised India that it will frame CAATSA Section 231 for India in a appropriate and lawful way  and exercise the waiver authority sensibly.

10. Taking a leap of faith on its own concerns, India expects U.S. to come through on waiving sanctions and be more flexible on trade issues.

11. While, U.S. expects India to work with it for next few months to ensure that the benefits from the 2+2 dialogue won’t add up only on the Indian side.

12. However, China has reacted on the 2+2 Dialogue between India and the U.S. through a post that, though the dialogue has a ‘symbolic’ significance, it is unlikely to yield a structural change in regional security layout and strategic balance.

13. China has described the 2+2 Dialogue as an exercise of normal bilateral relations between India and the U.S. and asked both the countries to do more for regional peace and regional stability.

14. With respect to the 2+2 Dialogue, China plays an important role in advancing “a free, open, and inclusive Indo-Pacific region” and promoting sustainable “debt-financing” in the South China Sea and the Belt and Road Initiative projects, respectively.