Bangladesh, US in talks to sign two defence deals

The United States is ready to support Bangladesh Military Forces Goal 2030 as it seeks to modernise its military equipment.

For that, Bangladesh will need to sign two “foundational” defence deals - General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA) and Acquisition and Cross Servicing Agreement (ACSA).

Both governments and military forces are in talks now to conclude those deals, an official of the US administration with knowledge of that issue told bdnews24.com. The official is not authorised to talk to media about the matter.

A senior official at the Bangladesh foreign ministry also confirmed that talks have commenced to conclude those deals “necessary to buy modern equipment from the United States”.

The US-Bangladesh defence relationship is important to Washington, as evidenced by its continued support for US-Bangla military exercises hosted by Bangladesh.

Those include Pacific Angel (Summer 2019), Disaster Response Exercise and Exchange (DREE) (Oct 2019), Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) (Nov 19), COPE South (Feb 20), and Tiger Lightning (Mar 20).

Over the last year, both sides conducted multiple Joint Combined Exchanged Training (JCETs) events and Subject Matter Expert Exchanges focused on counter-terrorism issues.

Washington also provided $3.3 million to send 233 members of the Bangladesh military to attend military professionalisation courses in the US and the wider Indo-Pacific region over the last year.

The US also provided $5.3 million to cover the total cost of procurement and delivery of five 38-feet metal shark boats to support the maritime security objectives of the Bangladesh Navy.

The Bangladesh government introduced “Forces Goal 2030” in 2009 with an eye on massive expansion and modernisation of the Bangladesh Army, Navy, and Air Force.

It is aimed at building a three-dimensional force capable of conducting multi-platform warfare. The Forces Goal 2030 was later revised in 2017. It  was the first plan to modernise the Bangladesh Armed Forces.

Under that plan, Bangladesh has bought different types of upgraded equipment including helicopters, unmanned aircraft, and anti-aircraft missiles, mostly from China.

“Everybody in the world knows we can provide the best quality modern equipment,” the US official said. “We greatly value the contribution of Bangladesh military officers who attend our military courses. We seek to support Bangladesh peacekeepers serving on UN missions.”

The official said they are currently working with the government of Bangladesh to conclude those foundational defence agreements (GSOMIA and ACSA), which are essential “to enabling a closer defence relationship, expanding opportunities for defense trade, information sharing, and military-to-military cooperation between our two countries”.

The official explained both the deals which are “nothing related to any strategies” or “containing China” as perceived by many.

GSOMIA

The GSOMIA is a foundational government-to-government bilateral agreement that will permit greater collaboration and sharing of classified military information in the form of intelligence and classified information US defence equipment.

GSOMIA is a reciprocal, legally-binding agreement that ensures governments understand and commit to protect classified military information at an equivalent level of security.

“It does not obligate or commit governments to share classified information or material, it only ensures equivalent protection of the information if shared,” the official said.

Washington has GSOMIA agreements with 76 partners across the globe, including several countries in South Asia.

GSOMIA serves to strengthen cooperation to advance shared interests of trusted partners.  As the US-Bangladesh relationship continues to grow, GSOMIA is essential to enabling the cooperation we both seek.

“For Foreign Military Sales (FMS) or GSOMIA, our security authorities would work closely with your security authorities to develop a security plan and standard operating procedures to implement required security measures.”

ACSA

The purpose of the ACSA is to allow the US and partner nation forces to procure and pay for common types of logistical support, supplies, and services in a way that simplifies cooperation.

“ACSA agreements do not in any way commit a partner nation to military action nor do they authorise the stationing of ships, aircraft, or military personnel in foreign countries.”

“They only serve to simplify the procurement and payment of logistic support, supplies, and services between partner forces,” said the official.

The United States has an ACSA agreement with over 100 countries, including India and Sri Lanka.

As a mutual logistics support agreement, for example, an ACSA could facilitate the transfer of fuel from the Bangladesh military to visiting US naval ships participating in the annual Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (CARAT) exercise.

“It could also improve the United States’ ability to respond to any potential humanitarian or natural disasters involving Bangladesh and facilitate the transfer of fuel from the US military to Bangladesh naval ships operating outside of their normal areas; thereby eliminating the need to contract with commercial vendors,” the official said to cite an example.