Ambassador Kwatra, US Deputy Secy Campbell meet Indian Astronauts, discuss space sector, defence space cooperation

Indian Ambassador to the US, Vinay Mohan Kwatra along with US Deputy Secretary Campbell and Principal Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer travelled to Houston to note the advancements in the India-US space cooperation in recent months and discussed steps to further advance the space partnership between the two countries.

In a press statement by the US Department of State, it was noted that the officials met with representatives from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), including two ISRO astronauts who are training at NASA Johnson Space Centre in preparation to join a proposed mission the International Space Station in 2025.

In a significant development, plans were discussed to launch a jointly developed NASA-ISRO Synthetic Aperture Radar Earth Science (NISAR) satellite in 2025. The officials also met with representatives from the space industry private sector to explore innovative ways for strengthening the Indian and American commercial space sectors.

Taking it to X, Ambassador Kwatra said, “Wonderful to visit the Johnson Space Center of @NASA with @DeputySecState Kurt Campbell and Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer. Had the opportunity to discuss India and US space cooperation including in human space flight program and enhancing partnership between the two private sectors in the fields of innovation and technology. Was also glad to meet the Indian astronauts training at Houston.”

Following President Biden and Prime Minister Modi’s June 2023 commitment to work together to “reach new frontiers across all sectors of space cooperation” and India’s signing of the Artemis Accords, our two nations reached an inflection point on collaboration across civil, security, and commercial space sectors,” the White House noted in a press briefing.

During the meeting in Houston, Indian and American officials also reflected on the accomplishments of the past few months and charted the next steps to take our partnership to the next level. These include the selection of two ISRO astronauts to train at NASA’s Johnson Space Center for the first-ever joint effort between American and Indian astronauts at the International Space Station, the launch of the Axiom-4 mission and celebrating the completion of a Strategic Framework for Human Spaceflight Cooperation to deepen interoperability in space and working toward the conclusion of a new arrangement on advanced astronaut training, the White House noted.

Notably, discussions were also held to promote defence space cooperation through the US-India Advanced Domains Defence Dialogue, India’s participation in US Space Command’s annual Global Sentinel exercise, launching of a space situational awareness joint challenge under the India-US Defense Acceleration Ecosystem (INDUS-X) and advancing reviews of Missile Technology exports.