WASHINGTON: India will be the only country outside US' formal treaty allies that will gain access to almost 99 per cent of latest America's defence technologies after being recognised as a 'Major Defence Partner', a senior Obama administration official has said. "But the term 'Major Defence Partner' does not automatically trigger a specific process or program in the US system. "India (now) enjoys access to (defence) technologies that is on par with our treaty allies. This is new guidance and new language that is intended to reflect the unique things that we have done with India under our defence partnership," the senior administration official said. India is the only other country that enjoys that status outside our formal treaty allies," the official told PTI explaining what 'Major Defence Partner' status means for India.Early this month, after a meeting between US President Barack Obama and Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the White House, the US, in a joint statement, recognised India as a 'Major Defence Partner'.

Source: Economic Times June 26, 2016 06:00 UTC