Editor's Pick: A major deal falls into place

The Hindu Newsletter - Newsletter - subject [The Hindu Logo]( [Facebook]( [Twitter]( [Youtube]( [Linkedin]( [Instagram]( Tuesday 27, October 2020 [alt_text]( Editor's Pick [A major deal falls into place]( [alt_text]( (The Editor's Pick is a new newsletter from The Hindu that provides a snapshot of the most important stories from today's edition of our newspaper, along with a note from our top editors on why we chose to give prominence to these stories.) India and U.S. are set to[sign the Basic Exchange and Cooperation Agreement for Geo-Spatial Cooperation (BECA)]( at the ongoing 2+2 ministerial dialogue. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Secretary of Defence Mark Esper are in India for the dialogue with their counterparts, Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. BECA involves India and the U.S. sharing of navigation maps for both the air and the sea, including confidential military data. This will give India access to high quality data from U.S. precision military satellites. BECA is the last of four foundational agreements that U.S. signs with its close strategic partners. The other three -- the [Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA)](, the [Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement (COMCASA)](, and the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA) -- have already been signed between the U.S. and India. The deal comes at a time when both India and the U.S. are having confrontations with China. The current U.S. administration has been keen on building allies and military capabilities in the Indo-Pacific, and both Mr. Pompeo and Mr. Esper are on their way to Maldives, Sri Lanka, and Indonesia after this meet. The Quad, an alliance among India, U.S., Japan, and Australia, had also widened its scope recently with all four deciding to participate in naval exercises together. China views these as a coalition forming against it in the Indo-Pacific, which it sees as its sphere of influence. Though India, unlike the U.S. or other countries in the Quad, has had direct military confrontations with China, it had earlier avoided being seen as part of a coalition against its neighbour. The BECA treaty will, however, embed it much deeper in the U.S. camp. This indication of a major geopolitical shift, along with the higher capabilities that the deal will bring to the Indian military, is what makes this story important. The Big Story [Coronavirus | Hopes rise for Oxford vaccine]( [alt_text]( From the Front Page [alt_text]( [2+2 Ministerial dialogue | India to sign geo-spatial cooperation BECA with U.S.]( [alt_text]( [Centre promises law to check stubble burning]( From the Opinion Pages [alt_text]( [The President who called a spade a spade]( [alt_text]( [Contesting neighbours, revised geopolitical playbooks]( Today's Editorials [The shade of grey: On FATF's man](dated tasks [Clearing the air: On Trump's cri](ticism on India air quality You are receiving this email because you are a user of [thehindu.com]( If you do not wish to receive any such emails, [unsubscribe here.](mailto:rm-0b46kyrxbf2f90kaup33rtbysa8hktz@newsalert.thehindu.com?subject=Unsubscribe&body=You will be unsubscribed from our mailing list.) To ensure you continue to receive emails from The Hindu in your inbox, please add newsletters.th@newsalert.thehindu.com to your contact. If you can't see the mailer, please [click here.]( Group Sites [The Hindu]( | [இந்து தமிழ் திசை]( | [Business Line]( | [BL on Campus]( | [Sportstar]( | [Frontline]( | [The Hindu Centre]( | [Images]( | [roofandfloor]( | [Classifieds]( Copyright @ 2020 ,THG PUBLISHING PVT LTD. [About Us]( | [Contact Us]( | [Digital Subscription](