Cara Abercrombie is no longer with the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
Cara Abercrombie was a visiting scholar with Carnegie’s South Asia Program, on temporary assignment from the Office of the Secretary of Defense. She focuses on U.S. security interests in Asia, particularly opportunities for greater U.S.-India defense cooperation.
Abercrombie is a career member of the U.S. government’s Senior Executive Service, with more than a decade of service in the Office of the Secretary of Defense. At the Defense Department, she has worked predominantly on Asia policy, most recently serving as deputy assistant secretary of defense for South and Southeast Asia. She has also served as principal director for East Asia policy, South Asia director, and senior India country director. From 2013 to 2014, Abercrombie was special assistant to the secretary of defense for national security policy. Prior to entering government, Abercrombie worked to support civil society organizations and political party development in Eurasia with the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs.
The defense and security dimension of the U.S.-India strategic partnership, despite demonstrating significant growth and progress in recent years, still lacks the maturity critical to enabling the cooperation envisioned.
U.S. defense sales to India remain important to the broader U.S.–India strategic relationship and deserve sustained focus by officials in both capitals to overcome obstacles to collaboration.
India may soon close a deal with Russia to purchase two S-400 air defense systems, thereby triggering secondary sanctions from the United States. Without Congressional action, the U.S.-India defense relationship will likely suffer.
The United States and India are on the cusp of translating a shared vision for the Indo-Pacific into tangible cooperation. Defense trade could prove an important catalyst.
