India-US naval drill shows ability to project power with allies, says US defence secretary

NEW DELHI: US defence secretary Mark Esper said America was “closely monitoring” the India-China stand-off and the disengagement process on the Line of Actual Control (LAC). In his virtual address to the International Institute of Strategic Studies, a global think-tank, Esper also said the USS Nimitz-Indian Navy exercises “shows US ability to project power in the Indian Ocean, and to sustain it with our allies and partners”. The Indian Navy’s maritime drill with the US carrier strike group has been interpreted as signalling America’s in…