Carter arrives in India to advance defense ties

US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter has begun a three-day visit to India to strengthen a relatively new defense relationship with the country.

Carter, who arrived in India on Sunday, has said that Washington has a "whole global agenda" with New Delhi.

"There's no question about where the United States-India relationship is going," Carter said at a talk at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York on Friday. "We can control and influence the pace, and I want to do that."

Carter has placed a great importance on improving defense relations with India which the US sees as a counterweight to the increasing power of China.

India, however, has been wary of having very close relations with any country, even the United States.

"India's very reluctant to be seen as too close to the United States, but the Pentagon is very bullish on this relationship," said Shane Mason, a research associate at the Stimson Center in Washington.

In March, commander of US Pacific Command Admiral Harry Harris said the US was willing to expand the maritime exercises it held with India yearly into joint operations across the Asia-Pacific.

SS