Question : VISIT OF U.S. DEFENCE SECRETARY

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(a) the details of the visit of U.S. Defence Secretary to India as a prelude to the visit of the U.S. President;

(b) the details of the agreements signed during the said visit; and

(c) the details of areas agreed upon for cooperation between the two countries?

Answer given by the minister

THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS (RAO INDERJIT SINGH)

(a) U.S. Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld visited India on 8-9 December 2004. He had meetings with the Prime Minister, Defence Minister, External Affairs Minister and the National Security Adviser on 9 December 2004.

(b) No agreements were signed during the visit.

(c) A review of our current bilateral defence cooperation took place during the discussions. Satisfaction was expressed at the rapid growth of this relationship including, the effective working of the dialogue mechanism, military-to-military contacts, exercises, visits, education and training. There was visible interest in broadening the ambit of our defence cooperation. Discussions on regional and international issues were also held during the meetings.