\n<\/p>\n
When the Salvor, a U.S. Navy rescue and salvage ship, pulled into a port in India\u2019s southeast this summer, the job at hand was patching up the aging vessel. But there was a bigger mission, too: opening another door for a U.S. military trying to stretch out across the Indo-Pacific and counter Chinese power.<\/p>\n
The Navy ship was the third in a year to arrive at Kattupalli, an industrial hamlet north of Chennai with a state-of-the-art shipyard. And this time, the visit marked the start of a five-year ship repair agreement \u2014 a tangible step toward defense cooperation for two nations pushed together by geopolitics and Washington\u2019s desire to court and strengthen a rising Asian giant.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re well equipped to do this,\u201d said Arun Ramchandani, the head of the defense unit of L&T, the Mumbai-based conglomerate that built the shipyard. \u201cAnd I think that this is just the beginning.\u201d<\/p>\n
The deal, which includes another defense contractor in Mumbai, is part of a strategy the Pentagon calls \u201cplaces not bases\u201d \u2014 pursuing access to more sites where the United States has no military installations of its own. In the vast Indo-Pacific, such connections could prove important for deterring China and, in the event of a conflict, sustaining a U.S. mobilization.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Beijing has already strengthened ties with Sri Lanka and Pakistan by building or expanding ports through its Belt and Road initiative, while just over the past year, Washington has raced to catch up by signing new or expanded security arrangements with the Philippines, Japan, Australia, Palau, Papua New Guinea and Vietnam, in addition to India.<\/p>\n
In some countries, the United States is lining up locations for ship or submarine repair and resupply. In others, it has gained access to strategic islands or sea lanes by agreeing to improve infrastructure and assist law enforcement with equipment, or by sharing information about threats at sea.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Greater defense cooperation with India \u2014 at the opposite end of the Indo-Pacific from American bases in Japan and South Korea \u2014 is an especially coveted prize for the United States, which hopes New Delhi will become both a military ally and an alternative to China for manufacturing and technology development. Under a shared defense road map<\/a>, the two sides, among other initiatives, also announced a major deal on jet engines this year.<\/p>\n Still, both countries have a lot of bureaucracy, history and skepticism to overcome.<\/p>\n Under a 1920 merchant marine law<\/a> that protects American shipyards from competition, for example, only noncombat ships can be repaired by other countries. New Delhi\u2019s relative military weakness and long history of acting as a nonaligned nation may also limit its willingness to work with the United States in a military conflict. And with Indian agents now accused of orchestrating the killing of a Sikh separatist on Canadian soil, Washington is facing new questions about Indian reliability.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n But Gen. Pat Ryder, the Pentagon spokesman, said the United States aimed to make India a logistics hub for the U.S. military and other partners in the Indo-Pacific, implying that the country\u2019s ports could be useful in a potential war. And both countries see the ship repair deal as an exercise in reassurance, confirming that warmer relations are here to stay.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n \u201cWhat\u2019s happened is the character of the relationship has changed \u2014 it has broadened, it has its benefits, but in implementation it has its huge challenges,\u201d said Anil Ahuja, a retired lieutenant general in the Indian Army who has worked on U.S.-India military task forces. \u201cWe have to learn where to plug in.\u201d<\/p>\n Concerns about China are driving the nascent partnership. New Delhi has become more anxious about Chinese submarines and ships moving between Africa and the subcontinent. Chinese research vessels also linger near India\u2019s coast more often, Indian officials said, raising concerns about spying by Beijing.<\/p>\n