New Delhi: Congress leader Manish Tewari has asked if a line on the Indo-US joint statement meant that US military bases were going to be allowed on Indian soil.

Tewari is MP of Sri Anandpur Sahib.

The India-US joint statement came after the bilateral meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US president Joe Biden on September 8, in what The Wire had reported was an hour-long talk.

Tewari pointed to paragraph 18 in the Indo-US joint statement and said it has "long term implications". The paragraph says:

“The leaders applauded the conclusion of a second Master Ship Repair Agreement, with the most recent agreement signed by the U.S. Navy and Mazgaon Dock Shipbuilders, Ltd., in August 2023. Both sides recommitted to advancing India’s emergence as a hub for the maintenance and repair of forward-deployed U.S. Navy assets and other aircraft and vessels….”

Tewari's contention presumably is over the implications of the note that India would emerge as "a hub for the maintenance and repair of forward-deployed U.S. Navy assets and other aircraft and vessels."

The US maintains several active military bases around the world, including at Australia, Germany, Iraq, Japan and South Korea, among other countries.

"Earlier too Para 14 in the Joint Statement dated June 22 2023 had a similar formulation. Is this a precursor to providing US Military bases on Indian Soil?" asked Tewari.

Tewari said that the National Democratic Alliance or Bharatiya Janata Party will have to clarify this in parliament.

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