S.Amdt. 6669

This amendment, submitted by Mr. Bennet, aims to add a new section (SEC. 1252) to bill S. 4784. Its purpose is to require the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of State to identify and report on defense systems, subsystems, critical components, or capabilities that are suitable for co-development or co-production with India over a five-year period.

Goals and Requirements

The amendment adds the following requirements to the bill:

• Reporting: The Secretary of Defense must submit a report to Congress within one year identifying suitable systems for co-production. This report must include a strategy for each system, including the mechanism for production (such as Foreign Military Sales), timelines, the lead office responsible, and any obstacles that need to be addressed.

• Considerations: When identifying these systems, officials must consider:

  • Capability gaps and operational demand for both the U.S. and India.
  • The industrial capacity of the Indian government and its defense firms.
  • Potential improvements to supply chain resilience and interoperability.
  • Shared development of hardware (like space technologies and munitions) and capabilities (like AI and cyber platforms).
  • Export control and technology security requirements.
  • The risk of sensitive technology transferring to countries including Russia, China, Iran, Cuba, North Korea, and Venezuela based on India's relationships with them.

• Accountability: The amendment requires the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of State to provide briefings to the appropriate congressional committees starting two years after the act is enacted, and annually after that, to report on the progress of these arrangements.