Link to the article: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/india-military-accelerates-historic-overhaul-to-counter-china/articleshow/86470909.cms
This article is about India’s plan to integrate their armed forces that would allow for greater cooperation with the U.S. and its allies. India’s plans to overhaul its military to try to match the strength of China’s military. The Indian military moves closer to the U.S. and its allies, which will strengthen defense cooperation against China. The move to accelerate India’s military was mostly designed to allow India’s military to operate better seamlessly across land, sea, and air since as of now 61% of the country’s overall budget is used on the army. With this military accelerator program they are looking at spending more money on their navy and air force. Although China has the largest standing army in the world, with more than 2.1 million troops, India is second with 1.2 million regular soldiers and 960,000 reserves whose pay and pensions absorb most of the defense budget in India.
This is important because a more unified Indian armed forces would make it easier for the country to link up with militaries from the U.S. and its allies in the event of a conflict. This is a key aspect of the AUKUS partnership. Part of the cooperation involves improved tracking and targeting technology. “There is an imperative need for India to keep close watch on Chinese (military) movements along the Himalayan border and in mapping China’s growing presence in the Indian Ocean,” Jash said. My thoughts on this are that the United States wants to stay perceived to be the most powerful country with the biggest military budget and that India wants to be perceived as one of the most powerful militaries in the world therefore, they keep a watch on other countries to show that they are world superpowers.
This is related to what we are learning in class that countries want to be posed as threats to other countries to try to assert their dominance. This is done in the article through intimidation factors like building up a stronger military so that other countries are aware they are a superpower. India, who is allied with the United States, is countering China’s military growth but it comes at a cost that India is spending more money on more advanced military equipment.